HISTORY / TRAJECTORY OF THE EFFECTS 262 GROUP
The Functional Assessment and Exercise Physiology – Science and Technology for Health 262 (EFFECTS 262)research group was established in 1988 by the Regional Government of Andalusia following an application submitted by Manuel J. Castillo Garzón, Professor of Medical Physiology at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Granada. Initially, the group’s research activity focused on Clinical Physiology (Functional Assessment) in diseases and cardiometabolic risk factors. Later, with the incorporation of Ángel Gutiérrez Sáinz, a new research line in Exercise Physiology was added, focusing on improving performance and health.
When presenting the history or trajectory of a group or an individual, there is a tendency to highlight successes and conceal failures, even though both provide valuable information about strengths and capabilities, merits and weaknesses. Similarly, trajectories tend to be presented as linear, almost predetermined, when reality is usually more complex and chaotic. Here, the history of the group is presented from a subjective perspective. Objective data can be found in other sections of this website.
The Importance of the Team
In a research group, the members themselves are just as important as, or even more important than, the work carried out—which can be easily quantified through doctoral theses or scientific publications. They work as a team for their own development and for the benefit of the group as a whole. Their personal successes, achievements, training, and professional status can change not only the lives of team members but, through their work, the lives of many other people. This goes beyond theses, publications, or projects and is much more difficult to quantify. A general overview can be obtained by looking at the life and professional trajectories of the “EFFECTS 262 Group Alumni” and exploring the achievements they have attained.
Object vs Subject in Scientific Research. Scientific research is often said to have the objective of generating knowledge and disseminating it. When such research is conducted in the field of Medicine, its ultimate purpose is to improve the health and well-being of the population. However, reality is more prosaic, and a more immediate objective is the professional development of those conducting the research: gaining training, completing a doctoral thesis, producing high-quality scientific publications that consolidate a scientific and academic career, and obtaining the resources—through funded projects—needed to pursue it. Solid training, doctoral theses, publications, and funded projects bring success and recognition.
Being aware of this, the first question asked of doctoral students joining the EFFECTS 262 group has always been more practical than scientific: What do you want to become? What do you enjoy working or conducting research on, or what would be most useful or feasible for you? Depending on the answer and the available possibilities, and with the aim of maximising the benefits for the doctoral student, the research work was oriented towards maximising the performance of both the individual and the group.
Among the group’s first doctoral students, one stands out for his training, abilities, and professional career: Ángel Gutiérrez Sáinz, Professor of Exercise Physiology at the former INEF of Granada, now the Faculty of Sport Sciences. As a founding member of the group, he introduced a new research line—Exercise Physiology—and led both the laboratory and the doctoral programme. Among his many qualities is his ability to identify his best students and motivate them to pursue research. As a result, a number of students joined the group who are now Full Professors and university lecturers at different universities in Spain and the Americas, some of whom have become internationally recognised leaders in their fields.
Other doctoral students in the group, most of them physicians, pursued their doctoral theses to advance their professional careers in clinical practice or academia. This objective is equally legitimate and worthy of recognition. The principle of maximising the return on every effort is one of the defining characteristics of the group. The positions achieved by doctoral students after their time in the group are presented in the “EFFECTS 262 Group Alumni” section.
EFFECTS 262 Group Relationships
Research is a collaborative endeavour that can and should extend beyond the group itself by fostering relationships with other research groups, enabling research training stays and collaborative research projects that benefit the entire team. These relationships, collaborations, and coordinated projects have had a major impact on the scientific development and training of the EFFECTS 262 Group.
The group’s past and present collaborations and joint projects can be found in the “EFFECTS 262 Group Relationships” section.
Maximising Performance
If one of the group’s research objectives is to improve performance, the group itself must set an example. Such improvement must occur even under adverse circumstances. This requires adaptability and making the most of every opportunity.
In research, ideas and projects often do not develop as expected. Sometimes, adequate resources or funding are not available to carry out the research. These circumstances may condition or even limit the work, but they should never prevent research from progressing or hinder the development of the people conducting it.
It is always necessary to adapt to circumstances, whatever they may be, and make the best possible use of available resources, however limited they might be. Conducting high-quality research with limited resources has particular merit. Projects that did not receive funding, or the lack of access to laboratory facilities for several years due to circumstances within the Faculty, reduced the group’s capacity but never prevented the work from progressing. On the contrary, these difficulties sharpened creativity and encouraged the search for new opportunities.
Indeed, research often presents circumstances that may lead us away from our original ideas or planned research lines but may also create opportunities that produce particularly valuable outcomes. The corresponding section presents the projects carried out, their outcomes, and the resources and funding available for their implementation, as well as the challenges that had to be overcome and the research opportunities they created.
Legacy
The legacy of the EFFECTS 262 Group is not limited to its scientific publications, doctoral theses, funded projects, awards, contributions to knowledge, or scientific discoveries. Its legacy also encompasses something far more intangible: the scientific and academic training of its members during the early stages of their careers, the promotion of scientific and human relationships, the value placed on teamwork, and its role as the foundation of a scientific school that originated at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Granada and now extends its influence nationally and internationally.