EPFL Innogrants: 4 life sciences projects awarded

EPFL’s Startup Launchpad has awarded CHF 100,000 Innogrants to start-up projects based at EPFL: Myriad Optics, Protonica, Dexterous Catheters and Biomatics.

 

 

Myriad Optics

Myriad Optics is ensuring food safety from farm to fork, thanks to the quick and accurate detection and identification of bacterial pathogens in the food industry.

Food contamination can have serious consequences – for farmers, food businesses, and for the people who buy and eat contaminated products. There are many methods and technologies used to detect and identify bacterial pathogens but they are either too slow, or they’re unable to identify the strains of interest. Myriad Optics aims to create a safer food supply chain through the world’s most comprehensive bacterial detection and identification technology.

The team is combining optical spectroscopy, microfluidics and machine learning to detect and identify harmful bacteria in under 2 hours, rather than days. The rapid and reliable test will mean food companies can be sure their products are safe in a simple and easy-to-use way.

 

Protonica

Protonica is reinventing proton therapy imaging and opening up access to advanced cancer treatments.

Cancer is the 2nd leading cause of death worldwide (after cardiovascular diseases). It’s estimated that one in every two people will develop some form of cancer in their lifetime. Proton therapy is a form of radiation therapy which uses protons instead of X-ray to precisely target cancer cells, sparing the healthy tissues. This focused treatment reduces side effects and vastly improves quality of life. However, because of the cost and complexity of this therapy, there are still several hurdles to overcome to make this novel cancer care more affordable and accessible. Protonica aims to accelerate the development and availability of proton therapy by upgrading the imaging system required for accurate dose delivery and its next generation treatment method.

The new Protonica imaging system doesn’t just offer a massive upgrade in accuracy and speed leading to more effective cancer treatments; its resin-based sensitive area can be easily replaced when getting damaged, reducing downtime and maintenance costs.

 

Biomatics

The Biomatics team hope to speed up and simplify the production of biologic drugs and cell therapies through their automated bioreactor system.

Biopharmaceuticals are drugs which are made using biological sources (as opposed to chemicals). They include a wide variety of products, from insulin and vaccines to gene therapies. Typically, these drugs are made by growing cells in a culture. This is a process which is done in several different stages – each step involves transferring the growing cells to larger vessels to maintain the right cell concentration to maximise cell growth and productivity. These transfers are done manually leading to higher labour costs, lack of consistency, and a risk of contamination.

The Biomatics team believe they can address this issue through their new single-use bioreactor bags. Instead of working through a batch process, the bioreactor is automated and operates through perfusion. This means fresh culture is continuously added to the bioreactor while waste is removed. This keeps cell concentration optimal at all times and boosts productivity by 20%.

 

Dexterous Catheters

Dexterous Catheters are working to support the best outcome for patients by equipping doctors with next-level cardiac technology.

Cardiac arrhythmia occurs when the heart beats either too slowly, too fast, or in an irregular pattern. The most frequent type of cardiac arrhythmia, atrial fibrillation, affects 38 million people and causes around 300,000 deaths each year. The traditional treatment for these arrhythmias is cardiac ablation – using a catheter to scar the heart tissue to normalize the heartbeat. However, this method has limitations. When pressure (to scar the tissue) is applied, the existing type of catheters buckle and can’t exert enough force. This results in success rates which are 10-20% lower and procedures which can be twice as long.

Dexterous Catheters have developed a technology which transforms these intricate and high-risk procedures, significantly improving operational efficiency and patient care. Their catheters can become rigid or soft on command. When soft, the catheters can safely navigate the complex chambers of the heart to the target zone. When hard, they resist buckling, allowing doctors to apply concentrated force for high-quality ablations.

 

 

Source: EPFL