Project description
Linking exosome genetic cargo and health status
The EU-funded MindGAP project is exploring a radical new vision that may bridge the gap between health status and mind/body interactions. Recent studies show that exosomes circulate throughout the body, delivering genetic data to recipient cells as messengers of health and disease, and they are also implicated in brain activity as they can cross the blood–brain barrier. Overall, the project is investigating the relationship between the genetic data in exosomes and health status as well as the possible link with mind-related activities. The goal is to create an innovative tool to analyse exosome genetic data, allowing each individual to correlate this information with their health status. The project will also explore meditation as a mental tool to control the health-related exosome cargo.
Objective
MindGAP presents a radical new vision that may BRIDGE the GAP between HEALTH status and MIND/BODY interactions and lead to a paradigm shift in medicine. The disruptive idea presented herein is sustained by relevant data presented in the literature: (i) exosomes circulate throughout the body as messengers of health and disease, transporting genetic data to be delivered into a recipient cell; (ii) and exosomes are implicated in brain activity, having the ability to cross the blood brain barrier. Thus, when exosomes circulate and exit the brain to peripheral cells, there is a message transported therein, which is related to its cargo inside the vesicle. Overall, we aim to know which cargo is related to health and which cargo is related to disease. Traditionally, everyone has been looking for disease indicators to detect disease. Herein, we look for sensitive health indicators that may change under disease installation, therefore yielding an unprecedented early disease detection possibility. Moreover, the possibility of using MINDFULNESS meditation as a mind-related tool to control the cargo of exosomes is explored herein. If meditation is successful in changing the behaviour and attitudes of many people, fighting depression, etc., it means that the exosomes cargo may be changed through this process. Thus, this could be a major route to a self-healing approach before disease begins. Finally, all this knowledge opens doors to an innovative device that may be used by everyone to understand his/her health status. Overall, MindGAP targets (i) the missing relation between the genetic data in EXOSOMES and health status; (ii) interfacing this link with MIND-related activities; (iii) and to create an INNOVATIVE and PORTABLE DEVICE that TRACKS EXOSOMES and ANALYSIS their relevant genetic data, thereby allowing each individual to correlate this information with their own HEALTH STATUS and the installation of a pro-active attitude of each one of us against disease.
Fields of science
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Programme(s)
Funding Scheme
RIA - Research and Innovation actionCoordinator
3004-531 Coimbra
Portugal