1994

Mandela is named president,
closing the era of apartheid

Nelson Mandela became South Africa’s
first black president after more than three
centuries of white rule

VHIR becomes the Research
Institute of Vall d’Hebron

After decades of research in poor conditions,
the Catalan authorities presided the opening
of our first facilities

2003

Leo Messi made his debut with
FC Barcelona

In a friendly game against Mourinho’s Porto,
he began to show a future star potential

Grouping labs and cores in our
first united space, the now called
Mediterranean Building

In 2010 opened the Collserola Building,
increasing our capacity to host researchers

2009

The H1N1 flu virus caused
a world-wide pandemic in 2009

An epidemic of influenza-like illness
of unknown cause occurred in Mexico in
March–April 2009. By the end of
the pandemic, there were more than 18,000
laboratory confirmed deaths from H1N1

VHIR gets the Accreditation
as Health Research Institute by
the Spanish Government

Carlos III Health Institute (ISCIII)
renewed the accreditation with very good
qualifications in 2014

2013

Higgs Boson
Positively Identified

Researchers reported that the particle
that appeared to be the long-sought Higgs
Boson does indeed have the basic predicted
properties of the standard model Higgs Boson,
clinching the identification

The new jewel of the
clinical research

Confirming the leadership in the number of
clinical trials and the fact of being a reference
to the industry, VHIR opens a new space
dedicated to the clinical research

2014

Outbreak of
Ebola virus in West Africa

The largest virus of this disease in history,
affecting multiple countries in West Africa
and arriving to Spain

VHIR celebrates 20 years
of excellence in research

Acknowledgement to the pioneers,
academic events and outreach activities
paying tribute to the past, celebrating the
present and preparing for the future

Vall d'Hebron, Institut de Recerca

ANNUAL
REPORT 2014