PROGETTO CO-FINANZIATO DAL FONDO DI SVILUPPO REGIONALE (POR FESR 2014-20) E DAL FONDO PER LO SVILUPPO E LA COESIONE (FSC)
Development and validation of a cheap portable device to perform hyperspectral imaging of plasmatic membrane lipid content in hematic cells (Azione 1.2.2 Asse 1 – POR FESR 2014-2020)
THE PROJECT:
BiophotOmic Project (OS1 ”Industry and Health”: Integration of Key Enabling Technologies among the main productive system within MedTech in order to innovate processes, products, and services) aims at developing an innovative medical device, combining KET and “-omic” approach: a) photonic technology (which is currently easily available, for instance using bench instrumentations), from whom it is possible to build up a biophotonic portable device supplied with customized software for darkfield microscopy analysis on a single drop of blood sample; b) innovative testing using lipidomic – biophotonic technology for combined hyperspectral analysis of plasmatic membranes fatty acid, in particular erythrocyte’s plasmatic membrane, as an innovative bio-marker to assess the health status.
This innovative approach is focused on haematic cells (lymphocytes and erythrocytes), from cellular, and animal models, and from ex-vivo human diseases, such as dysmetabolic disorders, oncologic, and neurologic disorders (Multiple Sclerosis and Alzheimer’s Disease).
This project wants to answer to the request of the modern red-biotech area: to develop a non-invasive, cheap, and easy to use device and to provide home-care solutions. The goal is to achieve a precision and personalized medicine, also linked to the food and lifestyle.
The partnership expertise in photonic, engineering, bioinformatics, microscopy, analytic biochemistry, biology allows going from TLR4 to TLR7.
The whole project partnership aims at commercialize the device, with the brand “BiophotOmics”, in order to produce and sell the medical devices integrated with the analytic service.
AIMS: BiophotOmics looks at developing innovative, portable biophotonic systems, for a non-invasive diagnosis, based on hyperspectral imaging, between the combination of the photonic KET and imaging.
EXPECTED RESULTS:
1) Device development and setting for biophotonic hyperspectral analysis in the darkfield on the biological sample (hematic cells)
2) Biophotonic device test validation, by analysing pathologic hematic cells, which behave as a sensor of health status
3) Software development customized, starting from the data obtained by biophotonic device on hematic cell.
SCIENTIFIC HEAD:
Prof. Luca Maria Neri
COORDINATOR:
University of Ferrara (LTTA Lead Partner)
Partners: University of Ferrara (LTTA Lead Partner), Proambiente, University of Bologna (CIRI-Life Sciences), Consorzio Futuro in Ricerca
COMPANIES: Lipinutragen, Silfradent, Hyperspectral Imaging
POR-FESR WHOLE FUNDING: € 718.683,25
PROJECT DURATION (months): 24 + 7
PROJECT STARTING DATE: 24/09/2019
PROJECT END DATE: 23/04/2022
GRANT REFERENCE: Delibera di Giunta Regionale ER 986 del 25/06/2018 (Bando per progetti di ricerca industriale strategica rivolti agli ambiti Emilia-Romagna prioritari della Strategia di Specializzazione Intelligente – Azione 1.2.2 Asse 1 – POR FESR 2014-2020).