Project description
Harnessing nanodiamonds for early detection of sepsis
Each year, millions of lives are claimed by sepsis, a condition that remains difficult to diagnose in its early stages owing to non-specific and variable symptoms. Free radicals produced by immune cells early in sepsis could help detect this condition before traditional inflammatory markers appear. These fleeting molecules have been challenging to measure owing to their high reactivity and low concentration. However, researchers can now use nanodiamonds to detect them with nanoscale resolution. The ERC-funded FORSEE project aims to pinpoint when and where these radicals form in neutrophils and monocytes. Researchers will develop a fibre-based instrument for real-time monitoring of nanodiamond sensor readings. This device will be tested in laboratory models. Ultimately, this approach could enable earlier sepsis diagnosis and improved patient outcomes.
Objective
Affecting 50 million people globally per year, sepsis is a leading cause of death in Europe. There is an urgent need for early diagnosis of sepsis to enable the timely start of treatment. However, early symptoms are difficult to diagnose, may be non-specific and vary per individual. One of the earliest responses in sepsis is production of free radicals by neutrophils and monocytes which precedes by hours or even days production of cytokines and other inflammatory markers currently used in clinical diagnosis of sepsis. Our preliminary data suggest that sepsis diagnosis can be improved by measuring the production of free radicals by circulating neutrophils and monocytes. However, free radicals are difficult to detect because of their high reactivity and low concentration. The detection challenge has recently been overcome with the use of diamond-based quantum sensing. This method relies on a fluorescent defect in a nanodiamond, the NV center, which changes its optical properties according to the magnetic surroundings. This purely optical technique enables measurement of free radicals at nanoscale resolution. The proposed research will establish when and where free radicals are generated in neutrophils and monocytes, identify those few radicals that play a role in sepsis and thus provide a proof of principle for diagnosing sepsis. Our findings will be compared and benchmarked with standard diagnostic tools. Further, a new fiber-based instrument will be developed that can read out the nanodiamond sensor via an optical fiber, which could be attached to an intravenous line. This instrument will enable online monitoring of free radical generation during sepsis in vivo. The new instrument will be applied in a mouse model in which sepsis is induced to determine when and where free radicals are generated. As well as providing these fundamental insights, this instrument could be further developed for use in monitoring sepsis development in patients in intensive care.
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 materials engineering fibers
- engineering and technology electrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineering electronic engineering sensors
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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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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.
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Call for proposal
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(opens in new window) ERC-2025-COG
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9713 GZ Groningen
Netherlands
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