2026/05/13

Josu Galarza returns from the Everest Challenge to raise awareness of prion disease research

Climbing 8,848 meters of Mount Everest demands endurance, strategy, and an extraordinary capacity to operate under extreme conditions. In biomedicine, the scientific community faces a similarly formidable “summit”: prion diseases. Disorders such as Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and fatal familial insomnia remain among the greatest challenges in neurodegeneration research. Today, this metaphor takes on a tangible meaning with the return of Josu Galarza from the Everest Challenge.

Far from being solely a sporting expedition, the Everest Challenge has served as a bridge between science and society. Led by the Asociación Española de Enfermedades Priónicas in collaboration with the AFIFF Associazione Familiari Insonnia Familiare Fatale, the project has succeeded in bringing international visibility to rare diseases that, due to their low prevalence, have historically remained largely unseen.

During the expedition, the team reached Everest Base Camp, where a symbolic gesture was performed in connection with the PRION 2026 Conference. This act reinforced the idea that research is not conducted in isolation but rather as a global, collaborative effort that brings together laboratories, patients, and the international scientific community. In addition, the audiovisual material recorded during the expedition will form part of the opening of the congress, linking on-the-ground outreach with the global visibility of these diseases.

Prion disease research

Prion diseases arise when a protein adopts an abnormal conformation capable of self-propagation, leading to progressive damage to the nervous system. Their rapid progression and the lack of effective curative treatments make their study an urgent scientific priority. In this context, the team led by Dr. Joaquín Castilla at CIC bioGUNE investigates how prion proteins spread, develops experimental models to study disease mechanisms, and explores new therapeutic strategies aimed at advancing towards real solutions.

Among the most promising approaches are technologies such as RNA interference (siRNA), which can block the production of the prion protein, and drug repositioning strategies that repurpose existing medicines. The latter is particularly relevant as it can significantly shorten development timelines and potentially bring treatments to patients sooner.

From the Himalayas to science: social and scientific impact

The participation of Josu Galarza in the Everest Challenge represents a new way of communicating science. By taking research beyond the laboratory, it becomes possible to engage society, raise awareness of rare diseases, and generate a tangible impact in terms of funding and research support.

This initiative also highlights the human dimension of science. Prion diseases are not only a biomedical challenge but also a profound social issue that deeply affects patients and families. Projects such as this contribute to building a support network and raising awareness of the importance of research in neurodegenerative diseases.

About CIC bioGUNE

The Centre for Cooperative Research in Biosciences (CIC bioGUNE), member of the Basque Research & Technology Alliance (BRTA), located in the Bizkaia Technology Park, is a biomedical research organisation conducting cutting-edge research at the interface between structural, molecular and cell biology, with a particular focus on generating knowledge on the molecular bases of disease, for use in the development of new diagnostic methods and advanced therapies.

About BRTA

BRTA is an alliance of 4 collaborative research centres (CIC bioGUNE, CIC nanoGUNE, CIC biomaGUNE y CIC energiGUNE) and 13 technology centres (Azterlan, Azti, Ceit, Cidetec, Gaiker, Ideko, Ikerlan, Leartiker, Lortek, Neiker, Tecnalia, Tekniker y Vicomtech) with the main objective of developing advanced technological solutions for the Basque corporate fabric.

With the support of the Basque Government, the SPRI Group and the Provincial Councils of the three territories, the alliance seeks to promote collaboration between the research centres, strengthen the conditions to generate and transfer knowledge to companies, contributing to their competitiveness and outspreading the Basque scientific-technological capacity abroad.

BRTA has a workforce of 3,500 professionals, executes 22 % of the Basque Country's R&D investment, registers an annual turnover of more than 300 million euros and generates 100 European and international patents per year.

Spanish version