Objective
Since 1989, a new class of devices for R&D in immunology, diagnostics and pharmaceutical research has been sold to scientific and industrial laboratories called biospecific interaction analysis or affinity sensors. The first of these by a Swedish company is based on Surface Plasmon Resonance (SPR) and has growing importance in the biochemical laboratory. Other suppliers entered the market a little later. We have invented an improvement of the method. The prime proposing German SME has invented the improvement, and is at the moment filing a patent. First experiments and some theoretical calculations are completed. Another proposer is the Finnish research organisation VTT lab in Tampere, that had completed a conventional SPR device for industrial uses. J. Sadowski of VTT is an expert in SPR optics and applications. The second SME proposer is Swiss CYTOS that will be an end user. CYTOS has invented substantial improvements in mammal cell culture and biotechnology processes. At the same time, CYTOS will provide biochemical knowledge for the coating of biosensor chips that will be used within the device. Our improvement will enable us to reach mass markets with devices like existing affinity sensors but at much lower production costs. This will open totally new markets in process control in biotechnology, self-monitoring of medical clients or environmental pollution detectors. We will test our improvement in a joint feasibility study of MINT and VTT in the exploratory phase of the project and complete an RTD proposal by all three proposers. In the RTD project, we want to build an improved optical device at the VTT lab, and develop user specific biosensor coatings with CYTOS. MINT will coordinate the two RTD projects and take part in both. A partner for exploitation and manufacturing of the optical device within the later RTD project is still searched. We expect a market opportunity of at least 4 MECU per annum for the biosensor chips which will be shared by CYTOS and by MINT, and of 200 devices sold in the first year after initial offering, which will be shared by the partner searched and by MINT.
Since 1989, a new class of devices for R&D in immunology, diagnostics and pharmaceutical research has been sold to scientific and industrial laboratories called biospecific interaction analysis or affinity sensors. The first of these by a Swedish company is based on Surface Plasmon Resonance (SPR) and has growing importance in the biochemical laboratory. Other suppliers entered the market a little later. We have invented an improvement of the method. The prime proposing German SME has invented the improvement, and is at the moment filing a patent. First experiments and some theoretical calculations are completed. Another proposer is the Finnish research organisation VTT lab in Tampere, that had completed a conventional SPR device for industrial uses. J. Sadowski of VTT is an expert in SPR optics and applications. The second SME proposer is Swiss CYTOS that will be an end user. CYTOS has invented substantial improvements in mammal cell culture and biotechnology processes. At the same time, CYTOS will provide biochemical knowledge for the coating of biosensor chips that will be used within the device. Our improvement will enable us to reach mass markets with devices like existing affinity sensors but at much lower production costs. This will open totally new markets in process control in biotechnology, self-monitoring of medical clients or environmental pollution detectors. We will test our improvement in a joint feasibility study of MINT and VTT in the exploratory phase of the project and complete an RTD proposal by all three proposers. In the RTD project, we want to build an improved optical device at the VTT lab, and develop user specific biosensor coatings with CYTOS. MINT will coordinate the two RTD projects and take part in both. A partner for exploitation and manufacturing of the optical device within the later RTD project is still searched. We expect a market opportunity of at least 4 MECU per annum for the biosensor chips which will be shared by CYTOS and by MINT, and of 200 devices sold in the first year after initial offering, which will be shared by the partner searched and by MINT.
Fields of science
- engineering and technologyelectrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineeringelectronic engineeringsensorsbiosensors
- medical and health sciencesbasic medicineimmunology
- engineering and technologymaterials engineeringcoating and films
- natural sciencesbiological scienceszoologymammalogy
- natural sciencesmathematicsapplied mathematicsmathematical model
Topic(s)
Call for proposal
Data not availableFunding Scheme
EAW - Exploratory awardsCoordinator
80807 München
Germany