iPEN (Innovative Photonics Education in Nanotechnology) aims to provide an education training program to young researchers (postgraduate, Research students) in the most common used photonic tools and techniques in a Nanotechnology Laboratory. The project will include the development of online & offline modules, as well as, the organization of intensive courses, that will foster the photonic learning skills and build the confidence of young researchers in the field of Nanotechnologies.
The iPEN project targets to cultivate and offer training in three sections: (1) in photonics skills requested from the nanotechnology and market needs, (2) in soft skills most requested from the market needs; and (3) in teaching, offline and online, skills of the academics in order to become better teachers.
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Alumni
While large-area crystal growth techniques, such as CVD, are successfully used for the production of GRMs, the presence of grain boundaries, vacancies and differently oriented grains, arising in such growths, substantially affect the crystal quality. This is unavoidably reflected in the physical properties of the GRMs which by definition depend stronger on the interatomic position of the few neighboring atoms as compared to bulk materials. There is currently no easily applicable, non-invasive, fast characterization method for determining with high-resolution these grain boundaries and orientations, over a large sample area. Our goal is to assess whether or not an optical technique could serve as a robust tool for early identification of common imperfections in the crystal structure of GRMs, during production. Furthermore, to get the produced GRMs back to the tray and provide quantitative feedback in real time, so that one can optimize crystal quality while still performing the growth. For this purpose, we will use polarization resolved second-harmonic generation (PSHG) optical microscopy for the eventual mapping of grain boundaries and crystal orientations, thus determining optically the crystalline quality of the produced GRMs.
Principal Investigator
Scientific Staff
Alumni
The main goal of the project is to assess whether or not an optical technique could serve as a robust tool for early identification of common imperfections in the crystal structure of GRMs, during production. Furthermore, the goal is to get the produced GRMs back to the tray and provide quantitative feedback in real time, so that one can optimize crystal quality while still performing the growth.
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IQONIC will offer a scalable zero defect manufacturing platform covering the overall process chain of optoelectrical parts. IQONIC covers the design of new optoelectrical components and their optimized process chain, their assembly process, as well as their disassembly and reintroduction into the value chain. IQONIC will therefore comprise new hardware and software components interfaced with the current facilities through internet of things and data management platforms, while being orchestrated through scalable strategies at component, work-station and shopfloor level.
DIAGNOSE to early detect the different characteristics of the new part to be produced in terms of material sensitivity and product design parameters,
PREVENT to prevent the defect generation by recalibrating the production line, as well as defect propagation in later stages of the production,
PREDICT to predict the defect generation and the expected quality, allowing modifications to the parameters before the production of the products,
SUSTAIN to plan the reworking or remanufacturing of the product, if this is possible, and its re-use and/or requalification.
ADJUST to adapt the process chains to the specific production requirements of each new part through an iterative process until the quality is acceptable.
MANAGE to manage the aforementioned strategies through event modelling, KPI monitoring and real-time decision support system.
DETECT to early detect the defect, to adapt the part parameters to the previous successful state and plan to send it either to downstream or upstream stage.
REDESIGN to provide feedback for the design performance and knowledge to future parts and iterations to better products and process chain.
Principal Investigator
Alumni
Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a devastating pathology with dramatic lifetime consequences affecting thousands of people worldwide. Therefore, and considering the very limited regeneration ability of the central nervous system, in this project we propose to develop a neural tissue engineered scaffold capable of not only combining fibrous and porous topographic cues in order to mimic the morphology of the native spinal cord, but also potentiating the properties of graphene related materials (GRM) supported in a protein-rich decellularized matrix (adECM). In fact, the suggested 3D microenvironment should present electrical, chemical, mechanical and topographic features able to preserve neural cell survival and enhance neural progenitor cell differentiation towards neuronal and glial cells. Progress in this sense will contribute to a better understanding of the key factors controlling repair in damaged neural tissues and, consequently, bring insights into new therapeutic approaches for spinal cord recovery.
NeuroStimSpinal aims at developing a treatment for patients after spinal cord injury (SCI). SCI results in para- and tetraplegia caused by the partial or complete disruption of descending motor and ascending sensory neurons. It leads to devastating consequences such as sensory loss, paralysis and bowel/bladder dysfunctions. Different strategies have been proven at research level. However, today there is no effective SCI therapy that can entirely restore neuromotor deficits.
More information of the official website: https://www.neurostimspinal.eu/
General Information:
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme. It was submitted to the call H2020-FETOPEN-2018-2020, topic FETOPEN-01-2018-2019-2020, and its type of action is RIA.
Project Title: A Step Forward To Spinal Cord Injury Repair Using Innovative Stimulated Nanoengineered Scaffolds
Short Name: NeuroStimSpinal
Grant Agreement No: 829060
Coordinator: Paula Alexandrina de Aguiar Pereira Marques, TEMA, Mechanical Engineering Department, University de Aveiro, Portugal
Total Budget: EUR 3 518 962.50
Consortium Partners:
1. UNIVERSIDADE DE AVEIRO (UAVR), AVEIRO, Portugal
2. FUNDACION TECNALIA RESEARCH & INNOVATION (Tecnalia), DONOSTIA SAN SEBASTIAN, Spain
3. UNIVERSIDAD COMPLUTENSE DE MADRID (UCM), MADRID, Spain
4. STICHTING KATHOLIEKE UNIVERSITEIT (Radboudumc), NIJMEGEN, Netherlands
5. FOUNDATION FOR RESEARCH AND TECHNOLOGY HELLAS (FORTH), HERAKLION, Greece
6. GRAPHENEST SA (Graphenest), Paradela do Vouga, Portugal
7. STEMMATTERS, Biotecnologia e Medicina Regenerativa SA (Stemmatters), BARCO, Portugal
The long-term vision of this proposal is to contribute with a solution for spinal cord injury (SCI) which can lead to severe motor, sensory and autonomic dysfunction. Currently, there is no effective treatment for the SCI1 and people are forced to severe loss of autonomy. The long-term target or scientific breakthrough to be achieved in the proposal is to get the regeneration of the spinal cord (SC) nervous tissue by means of the implantation of an innovative biomaterial in the traumatic injury point that is able to promote the grow and reconnection of the ruptured nerves. This is a long-term ambitious objective and to achieve it, is to demonstrate at TRL4 (in vivo animal) the suitability of the innovative biomaterial developed by the consortium (at TRL2). The long term clinical goal of research in SCI is to support healing or regeneration of SC.
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Alumni
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Glaucoma is the second most common cause of blindness worldwide. It is estimated that in 2010, 60.5 million people worldwide had some form of glaucoma and this figure will reach 79.6 million by 2020. Glaucoma is a group of ophthalmic diseases that lead to progressive damage of the optical nerve responsible for the transfer of information in the brain. Without some kind of intervention, most types of glaucoma are deteriorating.
If it is not treated immediately, the vision loss is irreversible and this has led to glaucoma being addressed as the "thief of vision". With the appropriate treatment, glaucoma can be cured. The reduction of intraocular pressure (IOP) is associated with slowing down to a great extent the risk of the disease progression. The thickness and the mechanical properties of the cornea are the main parameters influencing the IOP measurement.
Nowadays, the majority of people with glaucoma will have to use eye drops to tackle the problem. The biggest hurdle arising from their continued use is that many patients do not comply with their treatment. In attempting to address the above problem, various drug delivery systems have been developed that have limited the incidence, but have failed to overcome significant limitations such as the delivery of hydrophobic drugs and their high cost.
Therefore, it is necessary to develop new and innovative systems with the following advantages: i) flexible and stable systems for their suitable placement in the corneal area according to their thickness and size; (ii) ideal properties (optical, surface, mechanical and biological) of the controlled drug delivery system in the area where the problem occurs; (iii) suitable intraocular pressure sensor systems located at various points of the cornea, which according to the eye movement (during drug administration), they will record the IOP at regular intervals.
In this context, the collaboration of Emmetropia with the two research organisations (FORTH and TEIC) envisages the development of innovative devices known as "Alternative Smart Ocular Patches with Controlled Ophthalmic Pharmacokinetics" to improve the treatment of glaucoma. Their main features are the use of biocompatible materials (graphene oxide and biodegradable polymers) with the appropriate biological, electrical and mechanical properties; the appropriate glaucoma drugs; the investigation of the controlled pharmacokinetic mechanism based on the use of ultrafast lasers for micro-nano patterning of the ocular devices; and the inter-relation of the intraocular pressure and controlled drug release rate by the ocular patch.
The main objectives of the ocular patches are:
• The synthesis of biocompatible graphene nanostructures of graphene oxide and the binding of desirable drugs on them. • Micro-nano patterning of the ocular patch using ultrafast laser pulses.
• Development of a pilot-scale pressure sensor and its incorporation into the ocular patch. • Study of the functionality of the ophthalmic/ocular patch in the cornea of rabbits and the in vivo measurement of the intraocular pressure and the characterization of the controlled drug release mechanism from the ophthalmic/ocular patch.
• Enhanced collaboration between the company and the two research organizations through the contribution of the final product to the excellence and the competitiveness of the market for the treatment of glaucoma at a national and European / international level
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Alumni
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Brain function relies upon a complex, coordinated function of neurons, glial cells and blood vessels, which in neurological disorders such as epilepsy, Alzheimer’s, and Parkinson’s disease is disrupted. The EPIGRAPH project proposes the design and development of graphene biomolecular sensors, with graphene organic electronic ion pump (OEIP) neurotransmitter delivery, and electrophysiological electrodes integrated in an “all-in-one or single device/platform” for the prediction and control of epileptic seizures (towards a general intervention tool for most brain disorders). Specifically the main objectives are to: i) develop a graphene based biomolecular sensor for glucose and/or lactate detection using state-of-the-art laser processing techniques; ii) intervene pharmacologically to control brain activity via graphene-based OEIP electrophoretic drug delivery devices; iii) integrate the biomolecular sensor, the ion pump and the electrophysiological sensor into a single device that will enable combined electrophysiological and molecular measurements under in vitro/ex vivo (brain slice models) and in vivo environments (in situ animal model). The innovative function of this integrated single device is to provide treatment where and when it is needed. The “where” is provided by the local delivery made by the pump, and the “when” is provided by the molecular sensor if a predictive biomarker is found. EPIGRAPH will explore the potential of the device to provide local control of brain activity in vivo. A closed loop system will be developed that predicts and stops seizures in an animal model. Graphene provides an optimal foundation for this lab-on-a-chip as it provides flexibility, high-performance, bio-compatibility, etc. The addition of organic electronics provides a unique opportunity to add ion (and charged biomolecule) signalling to the bio-tech interface. In this project, we will address the current limitations in technology for interfacing with neural signalling using “organic neuroelectronics” – bioelectronic tools developed specifically for precise neurochemical interfacing – and provide more profound understanding of neural dynamics and better therapies for neurological disorders. The main challenge of such technology is to be able to generalize this device to a variety of brain disorders, to measure and intervene on brain function where and when it is necessary.
EPIGRAPH, a high-throughput medical device, will have a broad impact on different disciplines such as Neuroscience, Pharmaceutics, Bioelectronics, and Biomedical devices and also on the rapidly developing fields of biosensors, bioelectronics and GRMs. EPIGRAPH directly addresses the Flagship topic of Graphene-Applied Research and Innovation and in particular the specific area of 9. GRM based bioelectronics technologies. It is foreseen to fit with the scope of Work Packages 5 (on Biomedical Technologies) and WP6 (on Biosensors) of the Graphene Flagship Core Project.
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Scientific Staff
Alumni
The EPIGRAPH project aims to integrate the biomolecular detection and actuation technologies based on graphene-related materials into a single device, and predict (with biomolecular sensing) and stop (with biomolecule delivery) seizure genesis/propagation in an experimental model of temporal lobe epilepsy.
To meet these challenges, we define the following general objectives:
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To develop a graphene based biomolecular sensor for glucose and/or lactate detection using state-of-the-art laser processing techniques for better functionalization. We will focus on metabolic activity (glucose and lactate), because it is disrupted in neurological disorders, and because preliminary data indicate that slow changes in glucose/lactate may constitute a predictive biomarker of incoming seizures in epilepsy.
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To intervene pharmacologically to control brain activity via graphene-based OEIP electrophoretic drug delivery devices. The pharmaceutical industry has developed powerful drugs to treat neurological disorders, but these drugs failed in the clinic for various reasons (toxic effects, deleterious side effects, and poor brain penetration). We have shown that this issue can be addressed with electrophoretic ion pumps, which were shown to deliver biomolecules directly into the brain region to treat and stop epileptiform activity in a brain slice model [2].
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To integrate the biomolecular sensor, the ion pump and the electrophysiological sensor into a single device that will enable combined electrophysiological and molecular measurements under in vitro/ex vivo (brain slice models) and in vivo environments (in situ animal model). We plan to develop this technology for in vivo use to deliver large and/or aromatic molecules, which constitute most of the drugs developed by the industry. We will show that such devices can control brain activity, in particular seizures, which represents a major step beyond the current state-of-the-art.
NFFA-EUROPE sets out a platform to carry out comprehensive projects for multidisciplinary research at the nanoscale extending from synthesis to nanocharacterization to theory and numerical simulation.
Advanced infrastructures specialized on growth, nano-lithography, nano-characterization, theory and simulation and fine-analysis with Synchrotron, FEL and Neutron radiation sources are integrated in a multi-site combination to develop frontier research on methods for reproducible nanoscience research and to enable European and international researchers from diverse disciplines to carry out advanced proposals impacting science and innovation.
NFFA-EUROPE enables coordinated access to infrastructures on different aspects of nanoscience research that is not currently available at single specialized ones and without duplicating their specific scopes.
Approved user projects have access to the best suited instruments and support competences for performing the research, including access to analytical large scale facilities, theory and simulation and high-performance computing facilities.
The users access includes several “installations” and is coordinated through a single entry point portal that activates an advanced user-infrastructure dialogue to build up a personalized access programme with an increasing return on science and innovation production.
The own research activity of NFFA-EUROPE addresses key bottlenecks of nanoscience research: nanostructure traceability, protocol reproducibility, in-operando nano-manipulation and analysis, open data.
NFFA-EUROPE integrates 19 Partners, half of which are nano-foundries that are co-located with Analytical Large Scale facilities.
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Joint Research Activities overcoming bottlenecks of nanoscience research.The Joint Research Activities of NFFA-Europe, by addressing bottlenecks of nanoscience research, aim to overcome them and to develop new enabling methods and tools at the frontier in nanoscience and novel services to the TA users program to carry out academic as well as industrial projects.
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The Networking and Innovation activities address the construction and awareness of a comprehensive shared technical platform aiming to identify and enable the best solution to a user request, among possible access alternatives at the wide range of NFFA-Europe sites. The backbone of the platform is the Technical Liaison Network (TLNet), a team operating across the NFFA-Europe nodes, devoted to user support, to exchange technical information. Around this backbone operate the complementary networking activities of dissemination, training and mobility, industrial innovation, knowledge transfer and data management.
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Training and mobility opportunities, open to young and senior scientists and technology developers from across Europe in both academia and industry are in the form of schools, specialised training materials and the opening of short term visits to NFFA-Europe facilities to gain hands-on experience.
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Data management is contributing to creating a platform-wide data model to allow efficient recording and sharing of results as well as a strong contribution to building a successful open data policy for European technological platforms.
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