Researcher José Manuel Fernández-Real, from the Girona Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBGI) and the Dr. Josep Trueta University Hospital, has been awarded the 2025 Lilly Foundation Biomedical Research Award in the clinical research category. With these awards, the Lilly Foundation honors researchers who significantly contribute to the development of biomedicine and health sciences in Spain, aiming to promote high-quality science that advances knowledge and benefits society. The award acknowledges his outstanding scientific career and pioneering work in the study of obesity, type 2 diabetes, and other metabolic disorders.
Dr. Fernández-Real has made fundamental discoveries that have led to a better understanding of the complex relationship between inflammation, susceptibility to infections, and insulin resistance, revealing mechanisms that link these conditions with type 2 diabetes. His current research focuses on the gut-brain-microbiota axis and the impact of iron metabolism on cognition. He has recently published innovative studies that, for the first time, associate specific intestinal microbiota profiles (bacteria, viruses, and eukaryotes) with memory and executive brain function, as well as with inhibitory control, food addiction, depression, and fatty liver disease.
Dr. Fernández-Real leads the Nutrition, Eumetabolism, and Health research group at IDIBGI and the Biomedical Research Networking Center in the Physiopathology of Obesity and Nutrition (CIBEROBN). He is also Head of the Endocrinology and Nutrition Section at the Dr. Josep Trueta University Hospital, and Professor and Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Girona (UdG).
The jury of the Lilly Foundation Awards, chaired by scientist Carlos López-Otín, particularly highlighted “the originality and innovation of Fernández-Real in uncovering previously unknown connections between metabolism, inflammation, and metabolic diseases, opening new paths for research and clinical practice.”
The Lilly Foundation Awards annually recognize researchers who contribute to the development of biomedicine and health sciences in Spain. This year marks their 23rd edition, in which Professor Laura Lechuga, a researcher at the Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2), was also honored in the preclinical research category for her advances in nanodiagnostics through the development of biosensors for the rapid and precise diagnosis of diseases such as cancer or viral and bacterial infections.
About IDIBGI
The Dr. Josep Trueta Girona Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBGI) conducts translational research to improve people's health and care. IDIBGI is organized into 26 research groups distributed across five scientific areas (Cardiovascular and Respiratory, Metabolism and Inflammation, Neurosciences, Oncohematology, and Mental Health), bringing together more than 400 professionals, including healthcare workers and basic researchers, in the Girona region.
IDIBGI is a publicly funded private foundation under the Government of Catalonia. Its board of trustees includes the Departments of Health and Research of the Government of Catalonia, the Catalan Health Institute (ICS) Girona, the Institute of Health Assistance (IAS), the Catalan Institute of Oncology (ICO) Girona, and the University of Girona. IDIBGI is part of the CERCA system (Research Centers of Catalonia).
