Fostering innovation to improve people’s health

New therapeutic strategy to prevent brain damage in stroke patients

ATf treatment is a new neuroprotective treatment during stroke preventing irreversible brain damage and therefore decreasing serious long-term and permanent disabilities.

Smart dressings for chronic wounds

Dermoglass wound dressing is a composite of nanoparticles embedded in nanofibers. Dermoglass targets the main cause of ulcer chronification—impaired vascularisation. Recent in vivo PoC efficacy results have shown that it is more effective than existing treatments. It promotes healthy and differentiated skin formation as well as revascularisation of the wound. Therefore it is expected to lower the risk of recurrence. Improved healing rates are expected to reduce the need for frequent medical supervision. Dermoglass dressings can be self-applied on ulcers that are in the advanced process of healing.

POC device in myocardial ischemia

The development of a device for the rapid and specific measurement of glycosylated Apo J (Apo J-Glyc) plasma levels would allow the reduction of the elapsed time between event onset and decision making, speeding up the management of patients, improving their prognosis, and reducing the associated economic costs. This project is aimed to obtain a novel sensitive and reproducible methodology for the rapid and specific quantification of ApoJ-Glyc levels as an indicator (biomarker) for the diagnosis and risk stratification of patients with myocardial ischemia previous to the irreversible degeneration or necrosis of the myocardium. This new methodology with the novel device would represent a clear medical and technical advance. The economical and social impact of the present project will be high as this device will be the first in an area for a disease that affects over 50% of the population.

Wearable device to measure human motion and posture

Werium Solutions will offer a wearable and affordable sensor, called ENLAZA, to measure human motion and posture. The startup will also offer software packages to use the sensor information in three main applications: human-computer interaction, rehabilitation of motor disorders and assessment of the therapy progress. A head-mounted human-computer interface has been specially designed for people with motor disabilities, who are unable to control computer with standard interfaces (e.g. mouse or joystick). Additionally, Werium Solutions offers a software package consisting of serious videogames to rehabilitate motor control and posture. Finally, the device can objectively measure the range of motion which allows therapists to follow the rehabilitation progress.

Intelligent monitoring system for patients and dependents

A monitoring device via phone maintains the anonymity of the person being monitored and informs caregivers about certain changes in the status of dependent persons. Examples of events that the system recognises are: the patient shows a high degree of agitation, falls, leaves the bed, room, etc. It captures audio, images, and depth maps in an area of 25 m2. This information is processed by a computer unit that is able to recognise the events related to the patient, even in dark environments thanks to the infrared sensor technology.

Improving formulation and delivery of biopharmaceuticals

This pharmaceutical formulation will consist of protein nanocrystals grown in a hydrogel comprising 0.1% of a biocompatible and biodegradable peptide and 99.9% water, without the need to add other additives. These hydrogels are designed to confer stability to the protein crystals and be administered subcutaneously by injection. This pharmaceutical formulation will consist of protein nanocrystals grown in a hydrogel comprising 0.1% of a biocompatible and biodegradable peptide and 99.9% water, without the need to add other additives. These hydrogels are designed to confer stability to the protein crystals and be administered subcutaneously by injection.

New strategy to combat bacterial infections

RNRbiotics are highly active molecules with the capacity to inhibit DNA synthesis, blocking bacterial growth. This mechanism is a key factor to treat multi-resistant bacteria with a different mode of action compared to inefficient pre-existing therapies. The biofim matrix can act as a barrier to delay the diffusion of antibiotics into biofilms and also drives changes on bacterial metabolism to counterpart the antibiotic activity. Antibiotics with this key limitation include the major antibiotics used in chronic lung infections as colistin, tobramycin or ciprofloxacin. We have demonstrated the unique capacity of our molecules to inhibit bacterial biofilm formation and to destroy and eliminate preexisting bacterial biofilms, present in most infections in COPD and CF patients.

Syntheszation of novel potent soluble Epoxide Hydrolase (sEH) inhibitors

sEH is an enzyme found within cells whose inhibition has recently shown beneficial effects in cardiovascular (hypertension, atherosclerosis, ischaemic heart disease), inflammatory (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, renal inflammation), and metabolic diseases (diabetes type 2, metabolic syndrome) in several animal models.. We have recently synthesized a series of novel potent sEH inhibitors which clearly surpass the previously known sEH inhibitors.

Computer vision device for urologists to classificate kidney stones

myStone is designed to analyse pictures and detect the major compounds found in kidney stones as well as to provide detailed information about the stone, such as the types of components, their forms and their distribution in the stone, to allow an accurate classification and identification of it. This new product has been designed to overcome some of the handicaps detected in traditional stone analysis techniques. Compared to other techniques, myStone offers a time saving, more detailed and easy to use solution, while having the laboratory on the doctor´s desk and therewith providing autonomy for the urologist.

Faster intervention on the disease progression

The project is focused in the development of a new AD early detection kit, based on the new biomarker detection in blood analysis. An increase in the percentage of the biomarker in human postmortem brains from early stages of AD compared to healthy subjects has been identified MCI is considered an early AD stage, and MCI patients appear to be at an increased risk of developing AD at the rate of 10% to 15% per year versus 1-2% in old healthy people. There may be a difference in the biomarker presence between MCI patients that do not progress to AD and those that do, in combination with other currently recognised AD risk factors. If this hypothesis is verified, we may propose a new in vitro diagnostic tool for an early AD diagnosis.

A new therapy to treat liver, lung and pandreas disease

Cell reprograming technology can turn a patient’s skin cell into stem cells to study and treat human diseases and conditions. The process involves making synthetic molecules containing genetic information that are key regulators of tissue specific stem cell i.e. neurons, heart muscle cells, eye cells, or lung cells. The tissue specific molecules containing genetic information reprograms skin cells into new stem cells that can replace damaged cells in tissues and organs. The new cell reprogramming technology developed can be used to study many diseases such as cardiac, eye, ear, and spinal cord conditions to find the cause and treatment of its symptoms. It is a world first to be able to make endoderm stem cells from patient skin cells in 7 days using a clinical grade method we have developed. Endoderm stem cells are then differentiated into lung, liver and pancreas cells.

A new potent and safe antifibrinolytic agent for the prevention and treatment of hemorrhage

Control of hemorrhage currently aims to achieve normal hemostasis, representing a delicate balance between coagulation and fibrinolysis (a normal body process that prevents blood clots from growing and causing problems). Excessive activation of the fibrinolytic system can shift the haemostatic balance leading to hemorrhagic complications. CM-352 is an optimizaed compound which do not result in thrombus formation or other unwanted side effects.

A tool for checking creatinine at home

The unique features of the device should allow the determination of creatinine outside the lab, in a doctor’s office or at a patient’s home, addressing needs of the emerging market of telemedicine. Moreover, this simple device represents a breakthrough in the methods for the determination of creatinine, since it allows the detection at very low levels with minimal interferences. Therefore, it is superior to anything that has been reported so far in this field.

A new and sensitive kit for prediction of response in metastatic colorectal cancer

PrediCTC effectively classifies responding and nonresponding mCRC patients after only one chemotherapy cycle allowing the reduction of overtreatment and the selection of a more effective therapy, with the aim of increasing patient survival as well as savings in the healthcare system. It is a noninvasive and economic clinical tool that could ameliorate the sensitivity of routine imaging methods for the evaluation of therapy response and could be used as complementary information support related to therapeutic decisions.

Development of new therapeutic approaches for leukemia

Pre-clinical studies have shown that these drugs are potent as anti-AML agents. Moreover, the anti-AML effect was achieved within the safety range already approved for other indications.

Novel fusion protein for clinical management of diabetes mellitus associated with fatty liver disease

At CIMA (Center for Applied Medical Research, University of Navarra), we have designed a fusion protein aimed at improving both the control of glucose and at ameliorating the liver disease.

Integral Foot Protector based on 3D Fabrics for prevention of foot pressure ulcers

Prevention of pressure ulcers is key because treatment can be difficult and established ulcers can result in devastating consequences such as amputation. It is considered essential to decrease the pressure in the main risk areas of the foot to prevent pressure ulcers.

Miniaturized electrochemical sensor for the monitoring of free flap ischemia in post-surgery

ISCHEMSURG permits the continuous control of deep flap conditions with a wireless device. The device measures physiological changes directly in the tissue, instead of blood flow perturbations on arteries, making the device more reliable and with fewer risks. More importantly, ISCHEMSURG is a cost-effective technology that can be implemented in the majority of clinical settings.

In Silico Engineering of therapeutic Enzymes

PELE-e is a state of the art software application for sampling the interactions of proteins (enzymes) and their ligands, which are the substrates that the enzymes act on.

Inhibition of mechanostransduction as a novel therapy in the treatment of solid tumors

The development of peptido-mimetic drugs to specifically target mechanotransduction is a complete novel approach in cancer therapy. By inhibiting a specific interaction that only occurs in pathological and abnormal stiff tissues, the project aims to specifically block a malignant molecular event without affecting the surrounding tissue.

Molecular tool to diagnose endometrial cancer

CEMARK is based in the analysis of a set of protein biomarkers in uterine fluid, obtained from pipelle biopsies, providing accurate diagnosis to women with abnormal vaginal bleeding.

A new approach for the diagnosis of Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections

The immunochemical assay developed is specific of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, highly sensitive, robust, reproducible and provides actionable results in less than 2 hours, allowing routine screening and simultaneous analysis of multiple samples.

Prediction of positive response to CPAP therapy for patients with Resistant Hypertension and Sleep Apnea.

The implementation of the HIPARCO score in clinical settings as a predictive tool for elegible CPAP treatment, accurately identifies patients with both RH and OSA that could benefit from CPAP therapy for blood pressure control.

Medical Device for a better knee rehabilitation post-surgery

The device developed by Eurecat and Althaia comprises means for inducing a flexion-extension movement of the joint, further inducing a slide between the two articular surfaces. Therefore, the device permits a more natural articular movement.

Boosting immunity against Gram-negative bacteria by removing natural non-neutralizing antibodies

The main goal of the project is to establish a new treatment to prevent nosocomial infections, which will improve patient survival along with reducing hospital stays and costs.

Generation of patient-specific surrogate metrics based on multi-parametric tissue signatures

Surrogate outcomes, such as MTS imagining, could be used in the development of patient-specific metrics, substantially contributing to the reduction in the duration of clinical trials for novel therapeutic approaches. MTS could constitute a reference surrogated metric for early therapy assessment of aggressive brain tumours such as glioblastoma.

Development of a technology for diagnosing non-tuberculous mycobacteria infection

We have developed an immunological test based on a unique and specific NTM antigen capable of diagnosing NTM infections. The bases of the test resides in the detection of individuals sensitized with NTM and patients with a diseased caused by NTM, by means of the cytokines detection produced by blood T-cells after NTM antigen stimulation

A gene therapy strategy based on Adeno-Associated Virus (AVV) to treat Friedreich Ataxia

Gene therapy based on AAV to restore frataxin levels in vivo, thus reversing, halting and preventing the symptoms associated with FRDA.

Liver on a Chip platform for toxicology and drug development

The analysis of new drugs and biomolecules by the Liver on a Chip device offers a new quality level, as it predicts toxicity of drugs before being administered to humans, as well as a complete biochemical and cellular characterization of any given compound in human liver cells.

Development of a monitoring system for optimal individualized control of patients undergoing sedation-analgesia, based on predictive models

The proposed individualized monitoring system provides the clinician with real-time predictive information about sedative state, respiratory, and cognitive effects of the sedative-analgesic drugs administered. Predictions are based on mathematical models of drug effects estimated from prior data collected in patients.

Live attenuated bacterial vaccines for the prevention and eradication of multiresistant infections

The strategy represents a pioneering approach for virulence attenuation that would facilitate vaccine production. The platform entails a simple creation of auxotrophy to convert any bacteria into an attenuated microorganism that can be used as a vaccine.

Real-Time Microwave Imaging Device for Endoscopic Explorations and Interventions

The proposed device will be a small endoscope head composed of several radio frequency sensors. These will allow it to form cross-sectional, as well as both anatomical and functional images of the gastro-intestinal lumen tract.

Surgical kit to perform Spinous Process Shortening – Laminoplasty (SPS-L)

The immediate objective is to develop the kit of instruments and devices already designed for further clinical validation, which would allow to become an alternative to exisiting kits for laminoplasty procedures.

A preterm birth predictor device

The project is based on the development of an innovative device to accurately predict preterm birth and risk with anticipation enough to implement effective actions. In addition, the device gives an induction success probability assessment.