Descripción del proyecto
Un nuevo «policía de tráfico» detiene un cargamento intercelular con valor pronóstico y diagnóstico
En la década de 1980, los investigadores descubrieron que las células sanas liberan pequeñas vesículas extracelulares ligadas a una membrana, ahora denominadas «exosomas». Llevan un cargamento que incluye proteínas, ADN y ARN que en un principio se creía que estaba asociado con la comunicación intercelular y la señalización. Aunque eso sigue siendo cierto y los exosomas pueden afectar a la función de células lejanas, los exosomas y su cargamento también influyen en la metástasis y el crecimiento del tumor, así como en otras enfermedades, lo cual los convierte en biomarcadores potencialmente potentes para el diagnóstico y la monitorización. El proyecto Vezics, financiado con fondos europeos, acerca al mercado una nueva plataforma para el aislamiento de exosomas mediante la introducción de mejoras técnicas y la evaluación de oportunidades empresariales.
Objetivo
There is enormous interest in using exosomes in the diagnosis and monitoring of cancer and other diseases, as well as their
use as therapeutical tools. These cell-derived vesicles that are present in most bodily fluids are increasingly considered the
“future of biomedicine”.
However, in terms of clinical applications, we are far from realising exosomes’ full potential. The greatest barrier is the lack of
dependable protocols for their isolation.
Vivoscreen is developing a novel platform for exosome isolation based on size exclusion chromatography (SEC) and immune affinity chromatography (IAC). Capitalising on very promising research results, the Vezics platform intends to offer all the advantages of SEC and IAC, while eliminating its disadvantages with regards to exosome isolation. The Vezics platform utilizes SEC as a first stage for exosome isolation. SEC media are selected according to the properties of the input material. The resulting EV-rich fractions are further purified by (IAC) on columns built for specific scientific needs.
As high quality, by-product free isolation of exosomes is a prerequisite for all exosome applications, we expect our development to have a considerable positive impact across the entire spectrum; from research through diagnostic to therapeutic use of exosomes.
This is a high risk / high reward project targeting an emerging market segment with extremely high growth potential. This proposal aims a Phase 1 feasibility study to better understand the risks and opportunities involved in this exciting venture.
Our proposal was previously submitted to the SME Instrument and received 12.97 points. We hope that in the current proposal we managed to clarify key aspects of our approach to be found worthy for support. Since our last submission, we continued with the development and have built the functional prototype of the Vezics system. Thus, parallel to the feasibility study we can start its experimental validation and refinement as well.
Ámbito científico
Programa(s)
Convocatoria de propuestas
Consulte otros proyectos de esta convocatoriaConvocatoria de subcontratación
H2020-SMEInst-2018-2020-1
Régimen de financiación
SME-1 - SME instrument phase 1Coordinador
1031 BUDAPEST
Hungría
Organización definida por ella misma como pequeña y mediana empresa (pyme) en el momento de la firma del acuerdo de subvención.