Grifols and Ace Alzheimer Center Barcelona renew their collaboration to promote the AMBAR® clinical program and incorporate new centers

Barcelona, March 12, 2026 - Grifols (MCE: GRF, MCE: GRF.P NASDAQ: GRFS), a global healthcare company and leading producer of plasma-derived medicines, today announced the renewal of its agreement with Ace Alzheimer Center Barcelona to continue developing the AMBAR^® (Alzheimer Management by Albumin Replacement) clinical program at the AMBAR Center in Barcelona. In addition, the company announced the opening of new AMBAR Clinic centers in Madrid, Mallorca and Alicante (Spain), reinforcing its commitment to expanding AMBAR and improving access to the protocol for more patients.

Through the agreement, the AMBAR Center—operational since 2021—strengthens its role as the reference and training hub for the new AMBAR Clinics. Grifols has recently reached agreements to open new centers that will apply the AMBAR protocol at HM Sanchinarro University Hospital in Madrid, at Juaneda Clinic in Palma de Mallorca, and at Quirónsalud Torrevieja Hospital in Alicante. In addition, Grupo Hospitalario HLA is expected to join the network soon. All these AMBAR Clinics will be integrated within hospital centers and connected through the AMBAR Network, a scientific network designed to promote cooperation among multidisciplinary teams, continuous protocol improvement, and clinical excellence.

The project will include the creation of an AMBAR registry with real world evidence (RWE) data, which will solidify clinical benefits and contribute further scientific knowledge. Grifols is also exploring options to incorporate clinics in other European countries such as Germany and the United Kingdom.

The AMBAR clinical program is supported by 20 years of research and includes several international clinical trials^1,3,4 that showed that periodic plasma exchange with albumin slowed disease progression by 61% in patients with mild and moderate Alzheimer's disease.¹

The clinical approach is based on the hypothesis that much of the beta-amyloid, one of the proteins that accumulates in the form of plaques in the brains of people with Alzheimer's disease, circulates in plasma, bound to albumin. By extracting this plasma, the displacement and removal of beta-amyloid would be promoted, which could help modify the progression of the disease and slow the patient’s functional and cognitive decline.¹ In addition, patients may also benefit from the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of albumin.

"Renewing the agreement with an organization like Ace Alzheimer Center allows us to continue advancing in a project that combines clinical expertise and collaboration to improve the approach to Alzheimer's disease. We want to consolidate a model that promotes clinical excellence and research, while facilitating access to the program in more centers interested in applying the AMBAR protocol to their patients," says Dr. Antonio Páez, medical director of Grifols' AMBAR clinical program. “The opening of new AMBAR Clinic centers in other Spanish cities is a decisive step in bringing this protocol to more people.”

"This alliance reinforces our collaboration with Grifols, our commitment to innovation and to offering new therapeutic strategies that broaden the Alzheimer's treatment landscape. Strategies ranging from mild cognitive impairment to the most advanced stages of the disease," explains Dr. Mercè Boada, co-founder, neurologist and medical director of Ace Alzheimer Center Barcelona. "It is necessary to increase the knowledge of a multietiological disease that is going to need different approaches for its stabilization and improvement. The extensive experience acquired at the AMBAR Center is key to preparing the teams that will apply this treatment in the new clinics.”

With this renewal, Grifols, Ace Alzheimer Center and the AMBAR Clinic centers share a social commitment to improving the quality of life and well-being of people with Alzheimer's and their families.

More than 5,000 plasma exchanges

Currently, the AMBAR Center in Barcelona applies this protocol to patients at different stages of the disease, with an average duration of 18 months. Both the application and follow-up are carried out by Ace Alzheimer Center's professional team of neurologists, intensivists, neuropsychologists and apheresis specialists, who have 30 years of experience in the management of neurodegenerative diseases.

Since its launch in 2004, the program has performed more than 5,000 plasma exchanges in Alzheimer's patients, consolidating the scientific evidence on the safety and potential of the protocol, which is included in the American Society for Apheresis (ASFA) medical guidelines.²

¹. Boada M, López OL, Olazarán J et al. A randomized, controlled clinical trial of plasma exchange with albumin replacement for Alzheimer's disease: Primary results of the AMBAR Study. Alzheimers Dement. 2020 Oct;16(10):1412-1425. doi: 10.1002/alz.12137.  

². Connelly-Smith L, Alquist CR, Aqui NA et al. Guidelines on the Use of Therapeutic Apheresis in Clinical Practice - Evidence-Based Approach from the Writing Committee of the American Society for Apheresis: The Ninth Special Issue. J Clin Apher. 2023 Apr;38(2):77-278. doi: 10.1002/jca.22043. 

³. Boada M, Ramos-Fernández E, Guivernau B et al. Treatment of Alzheimer disease using combination therapy with plasma exchange and haemapheresis with albumin and intravenous immunoglobulin: Rationale and treatment approach of the AMBAR (Alzheimer Management By Albumin Replacement) study. Neurologia. 2016 Sep;31(7):473-81. English, Spanish. doi: 10.1016/j.nrl.2014.02.003.

⁴.Boada M, Anaya F, Ortiz P et al. Efficacy and Safety of Plasma Exchange with 5% Albumin to Modify Cerebrospinal Fluid and Plasma Amyloid-β Concentrations and Cognition Outcomes in Alzheimer's Disease Patients: A Multicenter, Randomized, Controlled Clinical Trial. J Alzheimers Dis. 2017;56(1):129-143. doi: 10.3233/JAD-160565