The mechanisms that cause the world’s most common chronic liver disease — Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) — to develop and progress are not still fully understood. Now, a study by the University of Barcelona has identified a new factor involved in the development of the disease: the protein ENT1, which allows the transport of small molecules essential for the functioning of liver cells into the cell. The results of the study, carried out with patients and animal models, open the door to exploring future therapies.
The research, published in the journal Metabolism, is led by Professor Sandra Pérez-Torras, member of the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biomedicine at the UB’s Faculty of Biology, the Institute of Biomedicine of the University of Barcelona (IBUB) and the Sant Joan de Déu Research Institute (IRSJD). The study also involved significant contributions from Professor Marçal Pastor-Anglada (UB, IBUB and IRSJD); postdoctoral researcher Aida Mata-Ventosa (UB, IBUB and IRSJD), one of the paper’s co-first authors; and researcher Maria Isabel Hernández-Alvarez (UB and IBUB).
Sonia Fernández-Veledo, from the Southern Catalonia Biomedical Research Institute (IRB CatSud), the Universitat Rovira i Virgili and the CIBER Area for Diabetes and Associated Metabolic Diseases (CIBERDEM), also co-leads the study carried out together with experts from other national and international institutions.
Protection against fat, inflammation and fibrosis
This chronic disease, which is not caused by alcohol consumption but by metabolic disturbances such as obesity, is characterized by the excessive accumulation of fat in the liver and can progress to more severe forms, such as advanced fibrosis or liver cancer.
To uncover the liver mechanisms that contribute to the early stages of the disease, the researchers focused on ENT1, a transporter protein that regulates the entry of small molecules called nucleosides across the plasma membrane. Thus, the team studied the expression of ENT1 — that is, the extent to which the gene responsible for producing this transporter is active — and its impact on liver and whole-body metabolism.
Experiments in mice with and without ENT1 have established a link between this transporter, nucleoside levels — particularly adenosine, a nucleoside involved in regulating inflammation and in cells’ response to stress — and the development of the characteristic alterations associated with the disease.
The results show that ENT1 deficiency reduces adenosine levels in the liver and protects animals against inflammation, fibrosis and excessive fat accumulation in this organ. Moreover, mice lacking ENT1 show improved glucose tolerance and increased insulin sensitivity, suggesting that the transporter’s effects may extend beyond the liver and affect the organism’s overall metabolism.
A different role according to the stage of the disease
Analysis of liver biopsies from patients and gene expression databases has complemented the results of animal models, showing that hepatic ENT1 expression varies throughout the course of MASLD. In the early stages, expression levels are higher in humans and mice, but decrease as the disease progresses. This suggests that this transporter is regulated differently depending on the stage of the pathology.
“The increased expression of ENT1 in the early stages could contribute to transport and uptake of adenosine in the liver, which would be consistent with the onset and early progression of the disease,” the authors explain.
Patient data also reinforce the possible involvement of ENT1 in whole-body metabolism. In individuals with early-stage MASLD, higher ENT1 expression in the liver is associated with elevated insulin levels and a higher HOMA-IR index, an indicator of insulin resistance.
“Overall, these findings identify ENT1 as a regulator of systemic nucleoside metabolism and metabolic homeostasis, and highlight nucleoside transport as a hitherto underappreciated axis contributing to the development and progression of MASLD,” the researchers emphasize.
A therapeutic approach with great potential The results of this study identify this transporter as a potential target for exploring new therapeutic strategies. Moreover, ENT1 is of particular interest because drugs capable of inhibiting its activity already exist, and some of these compounds are already in various phases of clinical development. “Therefore, ENT1 is not an unknown pharmacological target, although its potential use in MASLD still requires much more research, particularly in humans and with larger cohorts,” the researchers conclude.
References
Mata-Ventosa, Aida et al. «Equilibrative nucleoside transporter 1 deficiency protects against diet-induced MASLD and is stage-associated in human liver disease». Metabolism: Clinical and Experimental, 2026. DOI: 10.1016/j.metabol.2026.156710.
A study concludes that environmental contaminants capable of altering the hormonal system, also known as endocrine disruptors, do not affect the immune system equally. In fact, they can reduce the viability of immune cells and even modify the signals that activate inflammation. These chemical substances are present in numerous everyday objects, such as food packaging and textiles, furniture and even industrial products. A study led by the Southern Catalonia Biomedical Research Institute – IRB CatSud, entitled Immunomodulatory effects of Bisphenol A, perfluorooctanoic acid, and tris(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate on THP-1-derived macrophages, published in the scientific journal Environment International, analysed the effect of three environmental contaminants, bisphenol A (BPA), tris(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate (TDCPP) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), and their effect on cells of the immune system. The research shows that not all endocrine disruptors affect the organism in the same way, but rather that each one triggers different biological responses.
The results of the study, carried out by the Environmental, Food and Toxicology Technology Center (TecnATox) and Environmental Analysis and Management using Computer Aided Process Engineering (AGACAPE) research groups at IRB CatSud, show specific effects for each of the compounds studied when they encounter cells that are essential in the first line of defense of the immune system (macrophages).
Among the compounds analysed, a substance used to make certain furniture, fabrics and industrial products more fire resistant (TDCPP) was the one that showed the highest toxicity. Exposure to this substance reduced cell viability and caused a decrease in certain immune responses, which points to a possible immunosuppressive effect.
Regarding the chemical compound known as PFOA, present in coatings resistant to water, stains or grease, the researchers observed that it activates the body’s defenses very intensely. However, this activation did not translate into an increase in the levels of key molecules involved in communication between immune cells (cytokines). In other words, the cells appeared to activate certain defence mechanisms, but without generating the full response that the researchers expected to observe. This result points to possible mechanisms of action that are still poorly understood and that will require further investigation.
In contrast, BPA, a compound used in some plastics and food packaging coatings, had almost no effects in the tests. The researchers observed that it neither harmed cell health nor altered our defenses, nor did it prevent cells from communicating with one another. In any case, the research team points out that additional studies will be needed to better understand its impact on the immune system under other experimental conditions.
Overall, the results highlight that compounds classified within the same group of contaminants can have very different effects on immune cells. This knowledge may contribute to improving the assessment of the risks associated with endocrine disruptors and to gaining a better understanding of how environmental exposure influences human health.
Researchers from the Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV) and from the German Federal Institute in Berlin (Germany) participated in the study. Furthermore, the study is part of the European PARC project (Partnership for the Assessment of Risks from Chemicals), a Horizon Europe initiative and co-funded by the European Union focused on the assessment and management of risks from exposure to chemical substances in order to protect human health and the environment.
Bibliographic reference
Sabuz, O., Blanco, J., Deepika, D., Schuhmacher, M., & Kumar, V. (2026). Immunomodulatory effects of Bisphenol A, perfluorooctanoic acid, and tris(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate on THP-1-derived macrophages. Environment International, 213, 110321. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2026.110321
The Government of the Generalitat has announced an investment of 2.5 million euros for the improvement and expansion of the biomedical research infrastructures of the Institute for Biomedical Research in Southern Catalonia (IRB CatSud) at the Joan XXIII University Hospital in Tarragona. The main objective of the project is to overcome current space limitations and provide the center with modern, sustainable and functionally integrated facilities for the development of cutting-edge basic, translational and clinical research.
The Minister for Research and Universities, Núria Montserrat, highlighted that “this investment reaffirms the Government’s firm commitment to excellent biomedical research throughout the country. Catalonia’s scientific potential is built and deployed throughout the territory and strengthening a leading research hub in the regions of Tarragona and Terres de l’Ebre is essential to guarantee territorial cohesion and equity in access to health innovation”. In the words of the Minister, who presented the investment this morning at the IRB CatSud facilities, “committing to research from the territory and for the territory is directly committing to improving the quality of life of citizens, accelerating the transfer of scientific advances to clinical practice and to our hospitals”.
In addition, the minister highlighted the strong growth of the center’s scientific community in recent years: “IRB CatSud has demonstrated an extraordinary capacity to attract talent and scientific leadership. With these new facilities, we provide research teams with the most advanced tools to continue making decisive contributions in areas of high impact for public health, such as metabolic diseases, diabetes or infectious diseases.”
For his part, the director of IRB CatSud, Joan Vendrell, has highlighted the importance of this investment: “This is the first investment in infrastructure that has been made in the 20 years of existence of IRB CatSud in Tarragona, therefore, we want to thank this recognition of the research work that we do at the institute and the commitment that this investment represents to continue promoting our institute.”
Expansion of spaces and response to scientific growth
The planned actions include the expansion of the existing modular building, adding a new floor and increasing the total built area to approximately 2,000 m², of which 60% corresponds to the new expansion area. Likewise, a new exterior core of vertical communication equipped with an accessible staircase and elevator will be built.
The new investments will also allow the centralization of scientific and technical platforms that are currently fragmented, such as the optical microscopy unit and the cell culture unit. In this sense, a high-tech cell culture unit equipped to work with BSL-2 and BSL-3 biosafety levels will be created. These high-security facilities will open the doors to developing advanced research on infectious agents with a high impact on public health such as HIV, Covid-19 (SARS-CoV-2) or hepatitis B and C viruses.
The new spaces will also promote the use of advanced omics technologies (transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics and epigenomics) applied to the study of various complex pathologies, including obesity, diabetes, metabolic diseases and cardiovascular disorders. The institute currently hosts five research groups integrated into CIBER networks of excellence in these areas.
This expansion will allow us to respond to the strong growth in the activity of IRB CatSud in recent years. Since 2021, the research staff assigned to the institute has increased by 114%, while the staff directly hired has grown by 58%, reaching 189 workers in 2025, of which 161 are dedicated entirely to research. At the same time, the number of scientific projects has increased by 18% and the budget to be executed by 48% in the same period.
Sustainability and energy efficiency
The project will incorporate sustainability and energy efficiency criteria, with actions that include the installation of photovoltaic panels, the comprehensive renovation of the air conditioning and ventilation systems and the construction of a new envelope for the facade that will renew the architectural image of the building.
In addition to the expansion works, the investment includes the provision of new scientific equipment and specialized furniture for the laboratories, including biosafety cabinets, inverted microscopes, incubators and state-of-the-art computer equipment.
This investment is part of the agreements adopted in the Joint Commission on Economic and Fiscal Affairs (CMAEF) between the General Administration of the State and the Generalitat of Catalonia derived from the investiture agreement in the State between the PSOE and ERC. In addition to the Government’s contribution, the project includes a complementary investment of 2.9 million euros from the center and other funding funds.
IRB CatSud is the reference center for biomedical research in the regions of Tarragona and Terres de l’Ebre. Integrated into the CERCA network of centers of the Generalitat, the center promotes translational research to transfer scientific advances directly to clinical practice and to improve the health of citizens.
The Institute for Biomedical Research in Southern Catalonia (IRB CatSud) has launched the PERIVERSION clinical trial (Multicenter, randomized clinical trial to evaluate the cardioverter capacity of amiodarone pre-electrical cardioversion in persistent atrial fibrillation), the first study with drugs in which the institute plays the role of promoter. It is an academic, independent and low-level intervention trial that aims to evaluate the efficacy of amiodarone to reverse persistent atrial fibrillation before performing electrical cardioversion.
“Although this drug is the most widely used antiarrhythmic in Europe, there is still no solid clinical evidence on its usefulness or the optimal administration regimen in this indication,” says Josep M. Alegret, who leads the trial and is responsible for the Cardiovascular Research Group at IRB CatSud and clinical head of the Cardiology Service at the Sant Joan University Hospital in Reus.
Atrial fibrillation is the most common cardiac arrhythmia and affects approximately 4% to 5% of the population over 40 years of age, a figure that increases to 18% in people over 80 years of age. Among the main risk factors associated with this pathology are aging, high blood pressure and certain heart diseases, such as heart failure or valvular diseases.
This alteration in heart rhythm can cause palpitations, heart failure and a significant increase in the risk of stroke. For this reason, improving the available therapeutic strategies has a direct impact on the quality of life and prognosis of patients.
The study also includes the participation of different reference hospital centers, including the Hospital de Sant Pau, the Germans Trias i Pujol University Hospital, the Hospital Clínico de Santiago and the Sant Joan University Hospital in Reus. Soon, the Joan XXIII University Hospital and other centers in the State will also be included.
The trial will compare two different amiodarone administration regimens: one initiated five days before electrical cardioversion and another initiated one month before. In this way, the researchers want to determine whether the treatment is capable of not only preventing new recurrences of the arrhythmia, but also reversing it before the scheduled electrical intervention.
According to the research team, the implementation of this project represents a significant organizational challenge for IRB CatSud, as it requires a specific infrastructure and qualified personnel to manage the regulatory processes associated with clinical trials with drugs. At the same time, it consolidates the institute’s leadership and execution capacity in the field of clinical research.
The project has received funding from the Catalan Society of Cardiology and the Spanish Society of Cardiology, two entities that have committed to generating new scientific evidence on a disease that affects hundreds of thousands of people and to optimizing the treatment of one of the most prevalent arrhythmias in the population.
Representatives of the Biomedical Research Institute of Southern Catalonia (IRB CatSud) are currently participating in the annual conference of the Network of Clinical Research Management Entities (REGIC) in Spain, which will be held in Cadiz in 2026 and is organized by the Biomedical Research and Innovation Institute of Cadiz (INiBICA). The meeting brings together professionals in the management of research and innovation in health from all over the country with the aim of sharing experiences, identifying common needs and updating knowledge in strategic areas for the development of biomedical research.
The participation of the IRB CatSud takes on special relevance in the context of the institute’s future Clinical Research Unit. During the sessions on Friday, October 2, the center’s representatives are delving deeper into some of the issues that will shape the future of clinical research, such as the interoperability of information systems, data governance, and models that ensure safe, reusable, and high-quality data-based research.
As usual, personalities, professionals, entities and companies from the region have come together to collaborate in the promotional video of the Mamapop charity concert, which aims to raise funds for breast cancer research. This year, to the rhythm of a Catalan version of Kool & the Gang’s ‘Celebration’, the following have participated: Rubén Viñuales, mayor of Tarragona, Sandra Ramos, minister of culture of Tarragona, Noemí Llauradó, president of the Tarragona Provincial Council, journalist Xavier Grasset, actors Oriol Grau and Toni Albà, singer Mariona Escoda; as well as players from Nàstic de Tarragona Àlex Almansa and Oriol Subirats. The Associació Dones de la Casa del Mar de Tarragona, part of the CaixaBank Tarragona team and members of the Rotary Club Tarragona are also part of the promotional video. You can access the full video through this link .
The Mamapop Disco Remember! charity concert will premiere in Tarragona with a proposal that will cover great disco music themes from various generations with hits by Boney M, Kool & The Gang, Earth, Wind & Fire, Chic, Madonna, The Jacksons, Wham!, Cyndi Lauper, George Michael, A-ha, Kylie Minogue, Lionel Richie & Diana Ross or Jennifer Rush, among others. The new production maintains the essence of Mamapop: live music and a large-format staging with thirty professionals on stage and a selection of songs recognized by the general public. All profits from the concert will be allocated entirely to breast cancer research at the Institute for Biomedical Research in Southern Catalonia (IRB CatSud).
Mamapop has been collaborating with breast cancer research in Tarragona since 2023 and this will be the fourth edition of the project in the city. As a result of this commitment and the funding provided over the years, Mamapop and IRBCat Sud have been able to promote a Predoctoral Research Grant dedicated to breast cancer research.
The concert, which will have a single performance at the Palau Firal i de Congressos de Tarragona on Saturday 14 November at 8pm, will once again turn music and entertainment into a tool to raise funds for research. Tickets are on sale through www.mamapop.cat and, physically, at Farma Tarraco (C/ de Pere Martell, 5). Mamapop has this edition with the support of the charitable organizations Fundación Repsol, Fundació La Caixa, Port de Tarragona, Factor Energia and Rotary Club Tarragona. In addition to the collaboration of the Tarragona City Council, the Palau Firal i de Congressos de Tarragona and the Diputació de Tarragona. After its premiere in Tarragona, Mamapop Disco Remember will continue its tour with five more concerts in Lleida, scheduled between the end of November and the month of January.
The Castell del Cambrer in Reus hosted, this past Monday, September 21, a new edition of the informative micro-talks ‘Research for change’, organized within the framework of the European Research Night by the IRB CatSud and with the collaboration of the Rovira i Virgili University and the Reus City Council. The session brought together nearly 80 people, who were able to discover in an enjoyable and accessible way some of the research projects that are carried out in the territory.
Throughout the afternoon, researchers from IRB CatSud, ICIQ, ICAC, IPHES and the Rovira i Virgili University offered short talks on topics as diverse as cardiovascular health, heritage, sustainability and nanoscience, bringing research closer to the public with plain and understandable language.
The activity is part of the European Research Night program in Tarragona, an initiative that aims to bring science and its protagonists closer to society as a whole and show the impact of research on everyday life.
Sarcopenia is a syndrome associated with aging that is characterized by a progressive loss of strength, muscle mass and physical performance. Its development is multifactorial and involves aspects such as age, level of physical activity, diet and changes in body composition throughout life. Among the latter, the amount and distribution of body fat can play a relevant role.
“Abdominal fat is not distributed in the same way in all people nor does it have the same characteristics depending on whether it accumulates under the skin or around the organs,” explains Anna Pedret, researcher in the Functional Nutrition, Oxidation and Cardiovascular Diseases (NFOC-Health) research group at the Rovira i Virgili University. The group is studying, together with researchers from the Institute for Biomedical Research in Southern Catalonia, and with the participation of the Sant Joan University Hospital in Reus and the University of La Rioja, the relationship between this fat distribution and different health indicators. In a previous work, its relationship with metabolic alterations had already been analyzed, and now it has studied its association with different parameters related to sarcopenia.
The new research, published in the journal Frontiers in Endocrinology , was carried out on 72 people aged between 60 and 74 from the Camp de Tarragona area, 49 of whom were women. The researchers studied the amount and distribution of abdominal fat using ultrasound, differentiating between visceral adipose tissue (VAT), located around the organs, and subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT), which is located under the skin. Claudia Jiménez-ten Hoevel, first author of the article, highlights the advantages of ultrasound over conventional assessment methods: “Conventional measurements such as waist circumference or body mass index do not allow us to know how fat is distributed within the body. Thanks to the validation of ultrasound to make this type of measurement, we have much more precise information at our disposal.”
To evaluate the muscular condition and functional capacity of the people in the sample, the researchers measured three aspects: muscle mass, hand grip strength and physical performance, with the walking speed test.
The results show that the distribution of abdominal fat is associated differently with parameters related to sarcopenia according to sex. In both men and women, a greater amount of visceral fat (VAT) was associated with greater muscle mass, but also with lower muscle strength. In women, in addition, subcutaneous abdominal fat (SAT) was the only type of fat that was associated with worse physical performance.
These results highlight that, beyond the amount of fat accumulated, its distribution is also important, especially in the context of aging and muscle health. Therefore, the team argues that taking into account the distribution of abdominal fat provides relevant information for evaluating the different components of sarcopenia.
An accessible way to study abdominal fat
One of the interests of the study is the use of ultrasound to determine the distribution of abdominal fat. Currently, in routine clinical practice, the risk associated with abdominal fat is assessed using waist circumference. However, this measurement is as simple as it is limited, since it does not allow distinguishing between subcutaneous and visceral fat. Imaging techniques such as magnetic resonance imaging or computed tomography offer this information with great precision, but they are expensive, require specialized equipment and are not easily accessible in primary care.
Ultrasound, on the other hand, is a non-invasive and more accessible technique that allows us to estimate visceral and subcutaneous fat: “It allows us to differentiate the compartments of abdominal fat in a non-invasive and more accessible way than other imaging techniques. This information can complement common measures such as waist circumference or body mass index, which do not allow us to know where fat accumulates,” says Jiménez-ten Hoevel.
Reference: Jiménez-ten Hoevel C, Gironès I, Nicolás-Marzo J, Besora-Moreno M, Queral J, Valls RM, Pérez-Matute P, Motilva MJ, Llauradó E, Solà R and Pedret A (2026) Ultrasound-assessed abdominal fat distribution and its relationship to sarcopenia parameters in the community young older adults: a cross-sectional study . Front. Endocrinol. 17:1888492. doi: 10.3389/fendo.2026.1888492
During menopause, significant biological changes occur that can influence cardiovascular health. Do you know what they are? And have you ever wondered if we could learn the trick that plants use to generate energy? These and other questions will be addressed by researchers from the four research centers in the region and the Rovira i Virgili University (URV) next Monday, September 21 at the Castell del Cambrer in Reus, starting at 6 p.m.
All of this will take place during another edition of the ‘Research for Change’ micro-talks, one of the previous events for the European Research Night in 2026. This session of short interventions is organized by the Institute for Biomedical Research in Southern Catalonia (IRB CatSud) in collaboration with the URV and the Reus City Council. The speakers who will participate in the meeting represent the research centers IRB CatSud, ICIQ, IPHES and ICAC, and there will also be some from the URV.
Cardiovascular health, nutrition, microbiota, nanoscience, archaeology and heritage will be the main topics of this year’s interventions. The talks, lasting around 10 minutes, have an agile format, and the speakers use plain, informative and accessible language. This approach gives the event a close, relaxed and participatory character, as the audience is encouraged to intervene, share opinions and ask questions.
The objective of the meeting is for the different participating research centers to bring the science they develop closer to the public, making their studies and projects known in a way that is more understandable and accessible to everyone.
The speakers and topics of the talks will be the following:
1. Menopause and cardiovascular health: understanding the changes to gain health – Olivia Burton (IRB CatSud).
2. The diet that made us human – Marina Lozano Ruiz (IPHES-CERCA).
3. Reinventing photosynthesis with nanoscience – Carla Casadevall Serrano (URV, ICIQ).
4. Seeds that explain landscapes: agriculture and daily life in ancient Greece – Marina Daniel Pena (ICAC).
5. The uses of memory and heritage: the heritage management of Francoist monuments – Berta Pla Romero (URV).
6. An archaeologist sifting through the trash – Maria Joana Gabucio Vilarrasa (URV).
7. Metabolites, microbiota and circadian rhythms: the three vertices of a vicious circle that promotes health (or disease) – Aleix Ribas Latre (IRB CatSud).
European Research Night events
The European Research Night is an informative initiative that has its central activity with the scientific workshop fair, which will take place in Plaça Corsini in Tarragona on the afternoon of Friday 25 and the morning of Saturday 26 September . Between the two days, 50 workshops will make available to attendees highly experimental proposals from different fields of knowledge, to bring science, in its variety of disciplines, closer to young and old in a fun and accessible way.
The European Research Night is a public scientific dissemination event that takes place simultaneously every year in 300 cities in 30 countries on the European continent. Since 2018, the URV has been organizing this initiative in the Tarragona region, which has been growing and consolidating over the past nine years and which in the previous edition had the participation of thousands of people throughout the region. The aim of the European Research Night is to bring research and its protagonists closer to audiences of all ages and to publicize research and innovation in plain and understandable language.
Detailed information with all the activities of the European Research Night can be consulted on the website tarragona.nitdelarecerca.cat
A study led by researchers from the clinical area of the Sant Joan University Hospital in Reus and the Autoimmunity, Infection and Thrombosis Group of the IRB CatSud and the Rovira i Virgili University, identifies the lipid profile, determined during the first 24 and 48 hours after admission to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), as a potential prognostic marker of mortality in patients with sepsis who have required early invasive control of the infectious focus.
The study, recently published in the journal BMC Infectious Diseases (2026) with the title “Admission lipid profile and outcomes in sepsis requiring early invasive source control” , is the first to specifically evaluate the value of the lipid profile in the evolution of patients with sepsis. Lipids, which include cholesterol and other fats present in the blood, play an important role in regulating the inflammatory and immune response and the study analyzes this role in patients who had received early control of the infection through invasive procedures. The study included patients with different types of serious infections, such as urinary tract, abdominal and skin infections.
Admitted to the ICU between 2016 and 2023
The observational and retrospective research was conducted on patients admitted to the ICU of the Sant Joan University Hospital in Reus between 2016 and 2023. In total, data from 150 adult patients who met the diagnostic criteria for sepsis and had lipid profile measurements during the first 24-48 hours of admission were analyzed. The results show that patients who did not survive had a more unfavorable metabolic pattern, characterized by lower concentrations of HDL-C, LDL-C and total cholesterol, as well as higher levels of triglycerides and hypoalbuminemia.
One of the most striking results of the study is that patients who had lower levels of HDL-C cholesterol (good cholesterol) during the first hours of admission to the ICU had a higher risk of dying during hospitalization. This association was maintained even after taking into account other clinical factors and despite the fact that the focus of infection had been adequately and early controlled. In addition, HDL-C cholesterol was the parameter that showed the greatest ability to identify patients with a worse prognosis. This result reinforces its potential as a tool to help healthcare professionals detect cases at higher risk early and adapt their monitoring and treatment.
According to the researchers, these results provide a new perspective on the metabolic alterations associated with sepsis and suggest that early determination of the lipid profile could contribute to better risk stratification and more accurate identification of patients with a worse prognosis, even when the infectious focus has been effectively controlled.
This study opens the door to future research aimed at validating these biomarkers in larger cohorts and exploring new therapeutic strategies based on the modulation of lipid metabolism in sepsis.