Periodic Reporting for period 2 - ProID (Ultrafast Raman Technologies for Protein Identification and Sequencing)
Okres sprawozdawczy: 2022-11-01 do 2024-10-31
The ability to identify the human proteome at the level of single individual can significantly influence our comprehension of Life and our ability to prevent treat most of the existing pathologies. Conventional approaches for characterizing proteins can hardly be applied to single persons, thus hindering the development of personalized approaches.
To solve this problem, ProID has laid the bases for the next generation of platforms for sequencing amino acids along protein chains. The ProID idea relies on nanopore technologies, ultrafast Raman spectroscopy, novel SPAD cameras, and cutting-edge machine learning algorithms and quantum computations to reach extremely high sensitivity up to single molecule level.
A fundamental objective reached by ProID has been the introduction of new approaches for producing low-cost nanopore substrates with the potential of fast mass production and commercialization. This will help speeding up the future exploitation of the project outcomes.
To solve this problem, ProID has laid the bases for the next generation of platforms for sequencing amino acids along protein chains. The ProID idea relies on nanopore technologies, ultrafast Raman spectroscopy, novel SPAD cameras, and cutting-edge machine learning algorithms and quantum computations to reach extremely high sensitivity up to single molecule level.
A fundamental objective reached by ProID has been the introduction of new approaches for producing low-cost nanopore substrates with the potential of fast mass production and commercialization. This will help speeding up the future exploitation of the project outcomes.
The project made important progress in demonstrating the potential of a new method for identifying biomolecules, particularly single nucleotides, using an innovative combination of low-cost nanopores and ultra-fast Raman spectroscopy based on SPAD cameras. Although the technology is still in an early stage and requires further improvements in several areas, initial results are very promising. Key achievements include the successful detection of individual biomolecules with good sensitivity and the ability to distinguish different molecular types through their unique spectral signatures.
Importantly, the developed system shows strong potential not just for DNA analysis but also for broader applications such as RNA, proteins, and small molecules. Moreover, it will be suitable for real-world applications due to its cost-effectiveness, robustness, and compatibility with biological environments. With continued advancements, the technology could even contribute to complex tasks like protein sequencing and modification analysis in the future.
Not only the project reached results that are beyond the state of the art, but it also laid the foundation for future progress by realizing and providing computational and simulation tools that have been used to identify the main parameters which might play a major role during the molecule sequencing dynamics, as well as to accurately identify bases in very noisy datasets thanks to advanced machine learning algorithms. This toolbox will be essential to further progress beyond the ProID project.
The consortium has been also very active in dissemination activities and especially in publishing scientific results related to ProID in several open-access publications. In total, the consortium has already published 24 peer-reviewed publications and others are currently under review.
The project dissemination and communication activities began promptly since project start with a series of dissemination and communication activities released on National newspapers, TV programs, social media networks and the partners institutions webpages. A project graphic identity has been defined together with a website, that represents the main dissemination tool for ProID related news and results.
The consortium has organized the EsaX 2024 Workshop, Extreme Sensing and Chirality International Workshop in Cetraro, Italy, from September 29 - October 3, 2024. This event was focused on innovations related to molecule sensing and was thus perfectly in line with the technological objectives of the ProID project. The event has successfully gathered experts from all over the world that presented their latest cutting-edge results on topics very close to ProID ideas.
The consortium has been very active also on protecting the project results, submitting 3 patent applications strictly related to the ProID results and outcome. They confirm the high level and quality of exploitable results obtained in the action.
Importantly, the developed system shows strong potential not just for DNA analysis but also for broader applications such as RNA, proteins, and small molecules. Moreover, it will be suitable for real-world applications due to its cost-effectiveness, robustness, and compatibility with biological environments. With continued advancements, the technology could even contribute to complex tasks like protein sequencing and modification analysis in the future.
Not only the project reached results that are beyond the state of the art, but it also laid the foundation for future progress by realizing and providing computational and simulation tools that have been used to identify the main parameters which might play a major role during the molecule sequencing dynamics, as well as to accurately identify bases in very noisy datasets thanks to advanced machine learning algorithms. This toolbox will be essential to further progress beyond the ProID project.
The consortium has been also very active in dissemination activities and especially in publishing scientific results related to ProID in several open-access publications. In total, the consortium has already published 24 peer-reviewed publications and others are currently under review.
The project dissemination and communication activities began promptly since project start with a series of dissemination and communication activities released on National newspapers, TV programs, social media networks and the partners institutions webpages. A project graphic identity has been defined together with a website, that represents the main dissemination tool for ProID related news and results.
The consortium has organized the EsaX 2024 Workshop, Extreme Sensing and Chirality International Workshop in Cetraro, Italy, from September 29 - October 3, 2024. This event was focused on innovations related to molecule sensing and was thus perfectly in line with the technological objectives of the ProID project. The event has successfully gathered experts from all over the world that presented their latest cutting-edge results on topics very close to ProID ideas.
The consortium has been very active also on protecting the project results, submitting 3 patent applications strictly related to the ProID results and outcome. They confirm the high level and quality of exploitable results obtained in the action.
The future platforms that will be based on the technology developed in ProID will be unique tools for accurately sequencing human proteins exploiting nanopore technology, ultrafast Raman spectroscopy based on SPAD cameras, and machine learning algorithms.
In comparison to state-of-the-art nanopore technologies (both biological and solid-state), technologies developed in ProID will offer higher accuracy together with the ability of working with extremely low concentrations. The novel ProID approach based on low-cost nanopores and ultra-fast Raman spectroscopy with SPAD camera has the potential to identify the whole proteome and can be a revolutionary breakthrough in proteomic research and drug development.
A key innovation of ProID is the possibility to produce cost-effective nanopore substrates for sequencing applications. The new method enables fast, reliable, and repeatable production of nanopore substrates with high performance in optical sensing. Thanks to this innovative and low-cost fabrication method, the consortium will be able to quickly bring the ProID results to actual and useful applications in medicine, biomedical devices, and biomolecular sciences. This will accelerate the impact of the project on society in terms of socio-economic benefits.
In perspective, ProID will provide the ability to identify the human proteome at the level of single individual, which can significantly influence our comprehension of Life and our ability to prevent and treat most of the existing pathologies.
In comparison to state-of-the-art nanopore technologies (both biological and solid-state), technologies developed in ProID will offer higher accuracy together with the ability of working with extremely low concentrations. The novel ProID approach based on low-cost nanopores and ultra-fast Raman spectroscopy with SPAD camera has the potential to identify the whole proteome and can be a revolutionary breakthrough in proteomic research and drug development.
A key innovation of ProID is the possibility to produce cost-effective nanopore substrates for sequencing applications. The new method enables fast, reliable, and repeatable production of nanopore substrates with high performance in optical sensing. Thanks to this innovative and low-cost fabrication method, the consortium will be able to quickly bring the ProID results to actual and useful applications in medicine, biomedical devices, and biomolecular sciences. This will accelerate the impact of the project on society in terms of socio-economic benefits.
In perspective, ProID will provide the ability to identify the human proteome at the level of single individual, which can significantly influence our comprehension of Life and our ability to prevent and treat most of the existing pathologies.