Solidarity market to raise funds for intellectual disability research in Parc Taulí

• November 20, 2014

The Genetic Research Group of the Corporació Sanitària Parc Taulí is organizing the second edition of the Solidarity Market for Research on Intellectual Disability next Saturday, 22 November. The main objective of this initiative is to raise funds for the research project they have been carrying out since 2009: "Study of intellectual disability and psychiatric disorders in an adult population".

The team of clinical and laboratory professionals, led by Dra. Guitart, has been working for 18 years in the study of intellectual disability of genetic origin. The main goal is to establish the genetic origin of intellectual disability and psychiatric disorder, and at the same time identify the new genes responsible for this dual pathology. The results of this study will provide genetic counseling to the family and direct treatments.

The market will be located in Dr. Robert de Sabadell, on Saturday 22 November, from 10 am to 21 pm

Intellectual disability is a very prevalent problem, with 3% of the population affected. That means one in 10 families. Of all the disabilities, the intellectual is the one who has the most serious consequences for the people affected, their families and society, from a human, emotional and economic point of view.

A European working group has recently been set up to study genetic variants in adults associated with intellectual disability and psychiatric disorders. This work team will be formed by the genetic research group of the Corporació Sanitària Parc Taulí, the Specialized Mental Health Service of the Parc Hospitalari Martí i Julià (Girona), the Research Center for Intellectual Disability and Development of the London's Global University (UK) and the Neuro- and Psychopsychology Laboratory of the KU Medical School in Leuven (Belgium).

All kinds of objects donated by professionals from Parc Taulí and other entities will be sold

Currently, the Parc Taulí Health Corporation does not have a budget to complete the experimental part of the study, due to the refusal of all projects requested in recent years. Taking into account the economic situation with new reductions in public investment for research, the members of the Genetics group organized in 2013 the first edition of the Solidarity Market.

This year, the Genetics group at Parc Taulí still needs funding and is still without public resources. For this reason, a second edition of the Solidarity Market is being organized.