CSIC and the Cabildo de Tenerife create a natural products library

The Official State Gazette publishes this Tuesday, September 8, 2026, in issue number 222, the Resolution of August 31, 2026, from the Presidency of the State Agency Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), M.P., which publicizes the agreement signed with the Island Council of Tenerife for the execution of the project “Library of Natural Products of Tenerife” (LiPNaT). The agreement, signed on August 27, 2026, will be developed through the Institute of Natural Products and Agrobiology (IPNA) and appears in section III of the gazette, with official reference BOE-A-2026-18826.

The agreement, signed by the president of the Council, Rosa Dávila Mamely, and the vice president of Organization and Institutional Relations of the CSIC, Carlos Closa Montero, aims to maintain a library of natural products and compounds derived from the plant biodiversity of Tenerife and the Canary Islands, promoting excellence in research and the transfer of knowledge to the productive sector. The resolution bears the signature of the president of the CSIC, Eloísa del Pino Matute.

A commitment to Canarian biodiversity

The Canarian archipelago, and Tenerife in particular, concentrates high biodiversity and numerous endemic species, making it the most biodiverse region in Spain. Despite this, the study of the natural products of its flora has been insufficiently developed, despite being a source of inspiration for industry and modern pharmacy. The project is born with the objective of generating an ordered library of chemical compounds, along with a biological study to taxonomically and genetically classify the plants of origin.

The initiative gives continuity to a nominative grant awarded by the Council to the CSIC-IPNA through a resolution dated August 9, 2024, as a first approach to the discovery of bioactive molecules and drug candidates. The IPNA, founded in 1990 following the merger of the institutes of Organic Natural Products and Natural Resources and Agrobiology, published a total of 730 scientific articles between 2015 and 2025, 75% of them in the Q1 range, and was cited in more than 15,300 external articles.

Financing and commitments

The total cost of the project amounts to 1,882,000.15 euros, with the following distribution:

• Island Council of Tenerife: contributes 1,200,000 euros, at a rate of 600,000 euros in the 2027 and 2028 annual installments, destined for research personnel (903,000 euros) and other expenses (297,000 euros).
• CSIC: contributes 682,000.15 euros from its ordinary budget, of which 582,000.15 euros correspond to the first two annual installments and 100,000 euros to the maintenance of the library in the last two.

The CSIC commits to assigning research, technical, and support personnel, as well as securing minimum external funding equivalent to 20% of the total project cost. For its part, the Cabildo will obtain 15% of the exploitation rights of the transferred results that have been protected using this funding.

Monitoring, auditing, and validity

The agreement provides for the creation of a Monitoring, Surveillance, and Control Commission, composed of representatives from both institutions, which will meet at least once a year. The agreement is subject to a system of monitoring, evaluation, and auditing of results, carried out by an independent third party designated by the CSIC with the consent of the Cabildo, who will verify the operational maintenance of the library during the final two years.

The validity of the agreement is four years, extendable for a period of up to four additional years by means of an addendum. Failure to comply with the obligations, as established in the monitoring or auditing process, may lead to the total or partial reimbursement of the funding granted.

The creation of the Natural Products Library of Tenerife represents a significant step in enhancing the natural wealth of the Canary Islands, expanding the known chemical space, and opening new avenues for the discovery of drugs and high-value-added products, with a direct impact on research, knowledge transfer, and the island’s productive fabric.

Source: Official State Gazette, no. 222, September 8, 2026, Sec. III, page 120390 (official reference: BOE-A-2026-18826).