Description du projet
Des avancées en matière de résonance magnétique pourraient révéler les signatures métaboliques des maladies
Les scientifiques qui travaillent sur la résonance magnétique nucléaire et l’imagerie par résonance magnétique sont un parfait exemple de la collaboration interdisciplinaire et de ses avantages pour la science et la société. Ces domaines ont abouti à des avancées significatives dans un vaste éventail de disciplines, de la chimie aux sciences de la vie. Toutefois, la faible sensibilité inhérente des méthodes empêche de les généraliser à l’échelle nanométrique, et donc d’observer des processus métaboliques. Pour relever ce défi, le projet HyperQ, financé par l’UE, révolutionnera ces méthodes pour contrôler les spins à l’état solide à température ambiante. Cela augmentera de plusieurs ordres de magnitude la polarisation du spin nucléaire au-dessus de l’équilibre thermique et révolutionnera ainsi la résonance magnétique de pointe. La technologie HyperQ permettra de révéler les signatures métaboliques d’un vaste éventail de maladies, dont le cancer, la maladie d’Alzheimer et d’autres troubles neurodégénératifs.
Objectif
Many of the most remarkable contributions of modern science to society have arisen from the interdisciplinary work of scientists enabling novel methods of imaging and sensing. Outstanding examples are nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) which have enabled fundamental insights in a broad range of sciences extending from Chemistry to the Life Sciences. However, the key challenge of NMR and MRI is their very low inherent sensitivity due to the weak nuclear spin polarisation under ambient conditions. This makes the extension of magnetic resonance to the nanoscale (small volumes) and to the observation of metabolic processes (low concentrations) impossible.
HyperQ will address this challenge with the development of room-temperature quantum control of solid-state spins to increase nuclear spin polarisation several orders of magnitude above thermal equilibrium and thereby revolutionise the state-of-the-art of magnetic resonance. Essential for this development is the synergy of an interdisciplinary team of world leaders in quantum control and hyperpolarised magnetic resonance to enable the development of quantum control theory (“Quantum Software”), quantum materials (“Quantum Hardware”), their integration (“Quantum Devices”) and applications to biological and medical imaging (“Medical Quantum Applications”). HyperQ will target major breakthroughs in the field of magnetic resonance, which include chip-integrated hyperpolarisation devices designed to operate in combination with portable magnetic resonance quantum sensors, unprecedented sensitivity of bio-NMR at the nanoscale, and biomarkers of deranged cellular metabolism.
The HyperQ technology will provide access to metabolic processes from the micron to the nanoscale and thereby insights into metabolic signatures of a broad range of disease such as cancer, Alzheimer and the mechanisms behind neurodegenerative disease. This will enable fundamentally new insights into the Life Sciences.
Champ scientifique
- natural sciencescomputer and information sciencessoftware
- medical and health sciencesbasic medicineneurologydementiaalzheimer
- engineering and technologyelectrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineeringelectronic engineeringsensors
- medical and health sciencesclinical medicineoncology
- engineering and technologymedical engineeringdiagnostic imagingmagnetic resonance imaging
Programme(s)
Thème(s)
Régime de financement
ERC-SyG - Synergy grantInstitution d’accueil
89081 Ulm
Allemagne