Human beings have been constantly evolving over the years, and their capacity to adapt to survival has been more than demonstrated. When the pandemic of the new SARS-Cov2 coronavirus occurred in 2019, in spite of the restrictions, improvisation and constant challenges, science, technology and innovation had a tremendous growth searching for all kinds of diagnostic and therapeutic tools¹.

In this sense, during the pandemic years, the development of scientific research in our country was not on the margin of the pandemic, and mainly our university, with several groups of young researchers led by leaders in their areas, who sought to provide answers to an emergency situation.

Thus, during this period, work was financed by the National Council of Science and Technology (CONACYT) within the framework of the health emergency. The following stand out: “Results of plasma administration to patients with COVID-19” (Rossana Llanes et al)², “Predictors of severe evolution and mortality in patients with COVID-19 hospitalized in Paraguay in 2020” (Ignacio Ortiz et al)³, “Efficacy of home intervention strategies in patients with COVID-19: randomized clinical trial” (Gabriela Avila et al)⁴ and “COVID-19 convalescent plasma therapy” (Angelica Jimenez de Samudio et al)⁵.

At this point in the post-pandemic period, the constant work of the School of Medical Sciences research team continues in the permanent search for needs, protocols, guidelines, etc., which allows us to be at the forefront of emerging situations. Thus, we have led the “A Phase III, Parallel Group, Prospective, Randomized, Double-blind, Active-controlled, Two-arm, Multi-center Study to Evaluate the Immunogenicity, Safety, and Tolerability of the SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine Candidate MVC-COV1901 Compared to AZD1222 Vaccine in Adult Volunteers of 18 Years and Above” (Julio Torales et al)⁶, which is already completed. We are currently linking the National Polytechnic Institute of Mexico (IPN) and the Faculty of Medical Sciences of the National University of Asuncion to carry out clinical trials of the ChAdOx1 Chik vaccine against the Chikungunya virus, an epidemic that is currently plaguing us in the Americas.

Finally, we would like to inform that Paraguay currently has Law 7064/2023⁷ passed by the National Congress, which creates the National System of Researchers (SISNI) and establishes the career of Scientific Researcher. This law was created with the purpose of strengthening and promoting scientific research in our country, an essential factor for competitiveness, and a society based on knowledge, technology, and innovation. The aim is both the internationalization of our studies and the social recognition of science.

Having said all this, I invite you to read the interesting scientific articles presented in this new issue of Medicina Clínica y Social, some of them by young people who are taking their first and incipient steps in science, but with the conviction of growth that will benefit the country