Project description
Metal-organic frameworks in a ‘breathalyser’ for diabetes
The olfactory system (sense of smell) is one of the most primitive. It enabled ancient animals – and their present-day ancestors – to sense predators, food and mates based on identification and differentiation of many different chemicals and is thus essential to survival. Mimicking the highly effective olfactory system to enable detection of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) indicative of health functional status in a person’s breath would eliminate the need for many of today’s invasive, time-consuming and costly analyses. The ERC-funded MOFKADD project aims to leverage disruptive metal-organic frameworks to selectively detect the low concentrations of certain VOCs in breath to diagnose diabetes mellitus quickly and easily.
Objective
Diabetes mellitus is a global health concern affecting 537 million people and resulting in over 6.7 million deaths yearly. Diagnosis currently relies on blood analysis, which is expensive, time-consuming, and invasive. Breath analysis based on the detection of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) is a promising non-invasive alternative. However, selectively measuring specific VOCs in breath is challenging due to their low concentrations and the presence of interfering compounds. Since current miniature sensors cannot efficiently distinguish between VOCs, there is a need for a novel technology capable of distinguishing a VOC of interest from a complex background. This project aims to address this challenge by combining a highly promising class of porous crystalline materials, metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), with sensor technology. A novel sensing concept based on the kinetic selectivity in the pores of the MOFs will be leveraged to mimic natures approach to olfaction and enable selective sensing. A demonstrator will be established to enable diabetes mellitus diagnosis and prove the breakthrough potential of this disruptive sensing platform.
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.
- medical and health sciences clinical medicine endocrinology diabetes
- engineering and technology electrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineering electronic engineering sensors
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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.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC)
MAIN PROGRAMME
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Topic(s)
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.
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-ERC-POC - HORIZON ERC Proof of Concept Grants
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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) ERC-2024-POC
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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.
3000 LEUVEN
Belgium
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.