Research published in Nature, co-authored by ICVS’s Rui M. Reis, paves the way for new strategies in prevention and treatment.

Researchers from ICVS have discovered that compounds originated from the plant Hemerocallis citrina Baroni could have therapeutic potential for treating neurodegenerative diseases like Machado-Joseph Disease (MJD/SCA3) and Frontotemporal Dementia with Parkinsonism (FTDP-17). These diseases are characterized by the loss of neurons and severe motor difficulties.

Researchers at the Life and Health Sciences Research Institute (ICVS) of the University of Minho have taken an important step in the search for new therapies for Rett Syndrome, a rare neurological disorder that still lacks an effective treatment. The results of the study, now published in the prestigious journal Biomedicine & Pharmacotherapy, show that the experimental drug NLX-101 may alleviate two of the most severe symptoms: irregular breathing and cognitive difficulties.

Malaria is proving more difficult to treat than previously thought, as drug resistance is linked to multiple genetic mutations in the parasite rather than a single one. This is the conclusion of an international study involving scientists from ICVS published in Nature Communications.

The Life and Health Sciences Research Institute (ICVS) has been awarded the highest classification of EXCELLENT in the most recent national evaluation of R&D Units, conducted by the Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) under the Multiannual Funding Programme for 2023/2024.

Filipa Antunes, a researcher at ICVS, has won the ART 3R Award for 2025. Her project, “Intranasal Administration as a Minimally Invasive Alternative for Stem Cell-Based Parkinson’s Disease Therapy in Rodents,” has been awarded a €3,000 grant to explore a more humane and cost-effective method for treating Parkinson’s disease in animal models.