Mercedes Ricote wins the XX Health Sciences Award from the Caja Rural Granada Foundation
Dr. Mercedes Ricote and her team have won the XX Caja Rural Granada Foundation Health Sciences Award, worth 25,000 euros, for their work: Gamma-linolenic acid in breast milk regulates cardiac metabolic maturation. The Caja Rural Granada Foundation co-organizes this award with the Andalusian Public Foundation Health Technology Park with the collaboration of the Government of Andalusia, the University of Granada and the Colleges of Physicians and Pharmacists of Granada.
This research has revealed that the intake of breast milk is the essential signal for the neonatal heart to mature metabolically after birth, allowing it to function correctly and ensuring postnatal survival. Specifically, Dr. Ricote’s team has verified that in newborn mice, gamma-linolenic acid (GLA), from breast milk, binds to the cellular protein Retinoid X Receptor (RXR). Once RXR detects maternal GLA, it launches genetic programs that equip the mitochondria, the energy powerhouse of cells, with the necessary proteins to begin consuming lipids, the main source of the mature heart.
The results could have therapeutic implications in some cardiovascular pathologies. As Dr. Mercedes Ricote highlights, the finding opens up the possibility of modulating RXR activity in cardiac cells through the use of specific drugs, some of them approved by the US health authorities (FDA) for the treatment of some cancers.
The results could have therapeutic implications in some cardiovascular pathologies
The committee of experts has ruled in favor of this research due to the importance of discovering the mechanisms responsible for the maturation of cardiac cells in the newborn, identifying the mechanisms that regulate it. Likewise, work has great social importance for health, highlighting the role of certain components of breast milk and the need to maintain them in infant milk formulas. This work has recently been published in the journal Nature, one of the most important in the world.
The committee of experts has ruled in favor of this research due to the importance of discovering the mechanisms responsible for the maturation of cardiac cells in the newborn, identifying the mechanisms that regulate it. Likewise, work has great social importance for health, highlighting the role of certain components of breast milk and the need to maintain them in infant milk formulas. This work has recently been published in the journal Nature, one of the most important in the world.
This committee has been made up of representatives of the organizing and collaborating institutions: Ignacio Molina (Granada Biomedical Research Center), Lourdes Núñez-Müller (Andalusian Public Foundation Health Technology Park, co-organizing entity of the Award together with the Caja Rur Foundation
The work of Dr. Ricote
Dr. Ricote is currently developing her research activity at the National Center for Biotechnology (CNB-CSIC). For the researcher, receiving this recognition represents a significant milestone in her outstanding scientific career. “This recognition not only underlines her dedication and effort in the field of research, but also acts as an important boost for her professional career.”
Dr. Ricote’s work is a clear example of the importance of basic research, especially in such crucial areas as maternal physiology and the transmission of signals between mothers and neonates. This award not only honors Dr. Ricote, but also her entire research team, “especially the first author of this work, Dr. Ana Paredes, whose joint effort has been essential to achieving these achievements.” The recognition from Fundación Caja Rural Granada highlights the relevance of its contribution to the field of health and science, and promises to open new doors for future discoveries.
Mercedes Ricote graduated in Biology from the Complutense University of Madrid in 1985 and obtained her Doctorate in Biology and Extraordinary Doctoral Thesis Award from the same university in 1994. In 1995, Dr. Ricote joined the laboratory of Dr. Christopher Glass at the University of California San Diego (San Diego, USA), where he did his postdoctoral work. In 2004 she joined the National Center for Cardiovascular Research where she led the Nuclear Receptor Signaling laboratory. Since 2023 she has led the Nuclear Receptor Signaling laboratory at the National Center for Biotechnology (CNB-CSIC).
