The CIB Margarita Salas actively collaborates with different initiatives to face the current health crisis of Covid-19

The National Spanish Research Council (CSIC), a public research institution to which the Margarita Salas Center for Biological Research belongs, is promoting research in biotechnology, nanotechnology and demography to tackle the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus causing the Covid-19 pandemic, which constitutes a global health crisis today. The CIB Margarita Salas joins these initiatives with different activities.

The research center donated the protection material available in its warehouses to the Infanta Sofía Hospital in San Sebastián de los Reyes to be used by its health personnel. Along these same lines, 3D printing of individual protection screens has been carried out, which have been delivered to the Hospital de la Paz, IFEMA, Severo Ochoa and Clínico San Carlos. In addition, Charlotte valves (used for the conversion of snorkel masks into ventilation masks) and Dave valves (duplicators of Charlotte Valves) have also been printed and delivered to IFEMA. Moreover, ear protectors have been given to the ICU of Clínico San Carlos.

A list of research staff at the center, volunteer for intra and extramural collaboration with the molecular diagnosis of Covid-19 and any other activity required by the public health system, has been sent to the Deputy Vice President for Scientific Programming (VAPC) of the CSIC. Additionally, studies have been carried out on the possibility of developing at the CIB Margarita Salas both the molecular diagnostic protocol established by the Carlos III Health Institute (ISCIII) and the preliminary test in cell cultures, necessary for the repositioning of drugs against Covid -19, always considering biosecurity and the essential regulatory requirements for its usefulness in the health system. On May 15, the CIB Margarita Salas has been trained by the Ministry of Science and Innovation to collaborate in the screening of population that may have been in contact with the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus and it is incorporated into the list of entities that will be in the knowledge of other Public Administrations that are interested in the use of the declared capacities (up to 3000 samples per day).

Lastly, eight scientific projects aimed at fighting the pandemic have been submitted to the ISCIII-COVID-19 call, both coordinated by the CIB Margarita Salas and in collaboration with other centers. This call seeks proposals appropriate to the emergency situation, which allow for implementation and start-up in the National Health System of actions with concrete, early and immediately applicable results.

The CIB Margarita Salas will develop these initiatives, and all those that may arise in the coming days, aimed at tackling this health crisis, under the direct coordination of the CSIC, adhering to all calls in this line that the institution may launch.

CSIC have launched a new scientific platform named "Salud Global" to tackle the coronavirus crisis. 150 scientific groups belonging to this institution, some of them at CIB Margarita Salas, will work to achieve a global vision of the pandemic: origin, prevention, disease, containment, treatment, impact and dissemination. Dr. Margarita del Val, researcher at CBMSO-CSIC and coordinator of this platform, writes about the importance of research to overcome this crisis in this article published at El País.