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.

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.

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.

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

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.