Project description
Smart hydrogels for heart repair
Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death in Europe. When heart tissue is damaged, it cannot naturally regenerate, leading to heart failure. Current treatments focus on replacing lost tissue, but there is no perfect solution. Existing methods, like hydrogels with carbon nanotubes (CNTs), do not fully mimic the heart’s natural structure and function. Supported by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the SupraBioElectris project aims to develop new hydrogels that better imitate heart tissue. By combining branched CNTs with special peptides, the project will create smart, electroconductive materials that can support heart repair. The goal is to improve the electrical activity of heart cells, helping them heal and regenerate. Advanced techniques will be used to ensure these materials work at the highest level.
Objective
Cardiovascular diseases, including ischemic heart disease, are the leading cause of death in Europe. Cardiac tissue that has been lost by injury cannot be naturally regenerated, which leads to heart failure. To help repair heart, biomaterials-driven approaches, especially hydrogels in combination with carbon nanotubes (CNTs), are among the most promising strategies. However, existing CNT- based hydrogels provide a simplistic reflection of structural and functional features of the native cardiac tissue. A solution lies in mimicking the native tissue from multiple angles: bioadhesion, viscoelasticity, mechanical properties, electroconductivity, 3D supramolecular and hierarchically ordered fibrous structure.
SupraBioElectris aims to develop novel supramolecular biomimetic and electroconductive nanocomposite hydrogels by exploiting the concept of branching, widely occurring in nature. The key players in this project are thus branched CNTs and supramolecular, biomimetic short peptides-based hydrogels. The union of these contrasting components constitutes an innovative approach, making use of their strengths to reach the required multi-faceted biomimicry. The hypothesis is that the combination of these components will create smart and multifunctional biomaterials, able to boost and support electrical activity of cardiomyocytes and thus aid in heart repair. Furthermore, advanced, state-of-the-art material characterization tools will be used to study nanocomposites with nanoscale spatial resolution, ensuring optimal material design and function.
SupraBioElectris project therefore addresses one of the major health challenges and will highlight the importance of using supramolecular structures in the design of biomimetic materials. The project is highly interdisciplinary and international. It will also shape the researcher into a leading expert in hydrogels, by expanding his existing expertise via tailored training and acquisition of new skills.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- engineering and technology industrial biotechnology biomaterials
- engineering and technology materials engineering nanocomposites
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Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
MAIN PROGRAMME
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Topic(s)
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Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2023-PF-01
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
34127 Trieste
Italy
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.