Chronic Deep-Brain Micro-Endoscopy in Behaving Animal Models: Advancing Holographic Endoscopes Along the Path to Global Availability.

Informazioni relative al progetto

NEUROGATE

ID dell’accordo di sovvenzione: 101213906

DOI

10.3030/101213906

Data della firma CE 24 Aprile 2025

Data di avvio 1 Maggio 2025

Data di completamento 30 Aprile 2028

Finanziato da

• The European Innovation Council (EIC)

Costo totale

Nessun dato

Contributo UE

€ 2 498 226,97

Coordinato da

LEIBNIZ-INSTITUT FUER PHOTONISCHE TECHNOLOGIEN E.V.
Germany

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - NEUROGATE (Chronic Deep-Brain Micro-Endoscopy in Behaving Animal Models: Advancing Holographic Endoscopes Along the Path to Global Availability.)

Periodo di rendicontazione: 2025-05-01 al 2026-04-30

Sintesi del contesto e degli obiettivi generali del progetto

Understanding how the brain works requires observing how neurons communicate deep inside brain tissue. However, current imaging technologies cannot easily do this. Systems that provide very detailed images are usually large and can only look at the surface of the brain, while smaller tools that can reach deeper areas often produce lower-quality images or require invasive procedures.
NEUROGATE aims to solve this problem by developing a new type of imaging tool, the holographic micro-endoscope. This invasiveness of it's application extremely low and the observations can be achieved deep within the brain. It allows researchers to observe brain activity and structure at very high resolution over long periods of time, even in animals that are awake and behaving naturally.
The project focuses on three main goals:
• building and improving the technology,
• testing it in real biological experiments,
• and preparing it for future commercial use.

By combining these efforts, NEUROGATE aims to create a powerful new tool for neuroscience research, with potential long-term applications in medicine.

Lavoro eseguito dall’inizio del progetto fino alla fine del periodo coperto dalla relazione e principali risultati finora ottenuti

Within the first phase of the project, NEUROGATE has made significant progress towards its objectives.
A key achievement is the development of the core imaging system, which has been built and tested. The system is flexible and can work with different types of optical fibres, making it adaptable for various experiments. It has been successfully installed and used in partner laboratories.
New types of optical fibres have been designed, produced, and tested. These fibres are essential for delivering light into the brain and collecting signals with high efficiency.
The development of brain–scope interfaces, allowing the imaging probes to be applied repeatedly at the same location within the brain have been developed and tested in-vivo, making it possible to monitor changes over extended periods of time without additional damage to the tissue.
A number of in-vivo experiments conducted during the 1st reporting period have demonstrated stable long-term imaging of neurons, monitoring of blood flow, and recording of brain activity signals across the whole depth of the living brain.

The project has carried out extensive market research, including interviews and surveys of key opinion makers within the field of in-vivo neuroscience. These confirmed a strong need for improved deep-brain imaging tools and assisted in firecting further development.
The project has boosted its intellectual property, with new patent applications protecting key innovations, and explored regulatory pathway for research and medical-use device.

Progressi oltre lo stato dell’arte e potenziale impatto previsto (incluso l’impatto socioeconomico e le implicazioni sociali più ampie del progetto fino ad ora)

NEUROGATE goes beyond current technologies by combining three important attributes in a single technological solution:
• deep access into the brain,
• very high image quality,
• and minimal invasiveness.
A major innovation of NEUROGATE is the ability to perform chronic imaging across the whole depth of the brain, enabling researchers to repeatedly observe large amount of individual neuronal cells over extended periods of time. This is requisite for studying the onset and progression of a spectrum of debilitating diseases and how the brain changes during learning.
Importantly, the system allows researchers to explore multiple regions using a single implant, improving efficiency and reducing the number of animals deployed in experiments.
These advances open new possibilities for neuroscience research and will, in the future, support the development of medical diagnostic tools.

To reach the full impact of this technological prospect, further development will focus on testing the system in demanding experimental settings, improving the ease of use, and preparing for market entry.