Project description
New tool to detect inflammatory diseases
Inflammation-related diseases often involve tiny changes in blood vessel walls that are hard to detect with current tools. The ERC-funded ALFRED project will address this using positron annihilation spectroscopy (PAS) – a technique that examines molecular changes at incredibly small scales without damaging the tissue. Researchers will create a model of blood vessel walls and develop a special device to test how these walls respond to different conditions. PAS will be combined with conventional techniques to offer a clearer picture of how inflammation affects blood vessels. The proposed approach could lead to earlier detection of diseases, improving treatment options and patient outcomes.
Objective
Inflammatory processes have been identified as major contributors to various mental and physical diseases, significantly impacting global morbidity and mortality. Many of these conditions involve changes in the microvascular permeability that are challenging to early detect due to limitations in current diagnostic tools, which are either invasive or lack sufficient resolution. There is an urgent need for improved methods to detect and measure microvascular permeability. To advance the field, I will use Positron Annihilation Spectroscopy (PAS) to quantify alterations in the capillary endothelial wall integrity directly, known to be correlated to the endothelial permeability. PAS is a non-destructive, label-free technique that measures molecular dynamics at the nanoscale. By irradiating materials with positrons and analyzing their resulting annihilation events, PAS can provide real-time observations of nanostructural changes in biological tissue.
To achieve my goal, I will engineer a robust capillary endothelial wall model and I will characterize endothelial wall permeability changes under various pharmacological conditions, by using electrophysiological techniques. To perform intravital PAS on this in vitro model, I will develop a novel perfusion bioreactor, able to withstand high vacuum conditions and to interface biological matter with positron sources. I will then correlate PAS outputs with the ones of conventional techniques. To optimize drug concentration required to measure PAS variations, I will realize a numerical predictive model. Finally, I will validate my approach on the highly vascularized respiratory membrane of embryonated avian eggs. This project combines bioengineering, particle physics, and medical imaging to address a critical gap in current diagnostic capabilities, revolutionizing preventive diagnostics, and offering patients a new tool for early detection of inflammatory and endothelial diseases, that could improve their life expectancy.
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 environmental biotechnology bioremediation bioreactors
- social sciences sociology demography mortality
- natural sciences physical sciences optics spectroscopy
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Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
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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)
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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
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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 - HORIZON ERC Grants
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Call for proposal
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Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) ERC-2025-STG
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20133 Milano
Italy
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