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.
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