MedTech Projects at FAU

Advancing osteoporosis medicine by observing bone microstructure and remodelling using a fourdimensional nanoscope

Acronym: 4-D nanoSCOPE

Start: 1. April 2019

Ende: 31. March 2025

Funding: EU - 8. Rahmenprogramm - Horizon 2020

URL: https://www.4dnanoscope.de/

Leaders: Andreas Maier

Description:

Skin Classification Project: Smarte Algorithmen zur Unterstützung in der Melanomdiagnostik

Acronym: SCP2

Start: 1. October 2020

Ende: 30. September 2023

Funding: Bundesministerium für Gesundheit (BMG)

URL:

Leaders: Carola Berking

Description:

Wir möchten im Rahmen des hier beantragten Projektes die Voraussetzungen dafür schaffen, dass ein auf
künstlicher Intelligenz basierendes Diagnostik-Assistenzsystem für Hautläsionen in einer
groß angelegten klinischen Studie auf seinen realen Nutzen in der dermatologischen Praxis
überprüft werden kann.

Integratives Konzept zur personalisierten Präzisionsmedizin in Prävention, Früh-Erkennung, Therapie und Rückfallvermeidung am Beispiel von Brustkrebs

Acronym: DigiOnko FAU

Start: 1. October 2020

Ende: 30. September 2024

Funding: Bayerisches Staatsministerium für Gesundheit und Pflege, StMGP (seit 2018)

URL: https://www.digionko-bayern.de/

Leaders: Matthias Beckmann, Peter Fasching, Björn Eskofier, Peter Dabrock, Hans-Ulrich Prokosch, Andreas Maier, Oliver Schöffski

Description:

Breast cancer is one of the leading causes of death in the field of oncology in Germany. For the successful care and treatment of patients with breast cancer, a high level of information for those affected is essential in order to achieve a high level of compliance with the established structures and therapies. On the one hand, the digitalisation of medicine offers the opportunity to develop new technologies that increase the efficiency of medical care. On the other hand, it can also strengthen patient compliance by improving information and patient integration through electronic health applications. Thus, a reduction in mortality and an improvement in quality of life can be achieved. Within the framework of this project, digital health programmes are going to be created that support and complement health care. The project aims to provide better and faster access to new diagnostic and therapeutic procedures in mainstream oncology care, to implement eHealth models for more efficient and effective cancer care, and to improve capacity for patients in oncologcal therapy in times of crisis (such as the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic). The Chair of Health Management is conducting the health economic evaluation and analysing the extent to which digitalisation can contribute to a reduction in the costs of treatment and care as well as to an improvement in the quality of life of breast cancer patients.

Integratives Konzept zur personalisierten Präzisionsmedizin in Prävention, Früh-Erkennung, Therapie undRückfallvermeidung am Beispiel von Brustkrebs - DigiOnko

Acronym: DigiOnko UKER

Start: 1. October 2020

Ende: 30. September 2024

Funding: Bayerisches Staatsministerium für Gesundheit und Pflege, StMGP (seit 2018)

URL: https://www.digionko-bayern.de/

Leaders: Matthias Beckmann, Björn Eskofier, Peter Dabrock, Hans-Ulrich Prokosch, Andreas Maier, Oliver Schöffski

Description:

Empatho-Kinaesthetic Sensor Technology

Acronym: SFB 1483 EmpkinS

Start: 1. July 2021

Ende: 30. June 2025

Funding: DFG / Sonderforschungsbereich / Transregio (SFB / TRR)

URL: https://www.empkins.de/

Leaders: Martin Vossiek, Björn Eskofier

Description: The proposed CRC “Empathokinaesthetic Sensor Technology” (EmpkinS) will investigate novel radar, wireless, depth camera, and photonics based sensor technologies as well as body function models and algorithms. The primary objective of EmpkinS is to capture human motion parameters remotely with wave-based sensors to enable the identification and analysis of physiological and behavioural states and body functions. To this end, EmpkinS aims to develop sensor technologies and facilitate the collection of motion data for the human body. Based on this data of hitherto unknown quantity and quality, EmpkinS will lead to unprecedented new insights regarding biomechanical, medical, and psychophysiological body function models and mechanisms of action as well as their interdependencies.The main focus of EmpkinS is on capturing human motion parameters at the macroscopic level (the human body or segments thereof and the cardiopulmonary function) and at the microscopic level (facial expressions and fasciculations). The acquired data are captured remotely in a minimally disturbing and non-invasive manner and with very high resolution. The physiological and behavioural states underlying the motion pattern are then reconstructed algorithmically from this data, using biomechanical, neuromotor, and psychomotor body function models. The sensors, body function models, and the inversion of mechanisms of action establish a link between the internal biomedical body layers and the outer biomedical technology layers. Research into this link is highly innovative, extraordinarily complex, and many of its facets have not been investigated so far.To address the numerous and multifaceted research challenges, the EmpkinS CRC is designed as an interdisciplinary research programme. The research programme is coherently aligned along the sensor chain from the primary sensor technology (Research Area A) over signal and data processing (Research Areas B and C) and the associated modelling of the internal body functions and processes (Research Areas C and D) to the psychological and medical interpretation of the sensor data (Research Area D). Ethics research (Research Area E) is an integral part of the research programme to ensure responsible research and ethical use of EmpkinS technology.The proposed twelve-year EmpkinS research programme will develop novel methodologies and technologies that will generate cutting-edge knowledge to link biomedical processes inside the human body with the information captured outside the body by wireless and microwave sensor technology. With this quantum leap in medical technology, EmpkinS will pave the way for completely new "digital", patient-centred diagnosis and therapeutic options in medicine and psychology.Medical technology is a research focus with flagship character in the greater Erlangen-Nürnberg area. This outstanding background along with the extensive preparatory work of the involved researchers form the basis and backbone of EmpkinS.

Intelligente, Chatbot-assistierte ambulante Nachsorge der Depressionen bei Jugendlichen und jungen Erwachsenen

Acronym: iCan

Start: 1. September 2021

Ende: 31. August 2024

Funding: andere Förderorganisation

URL: https://klips.phil.fau.de/ican

Leaders: Matthias Berking

Description:

Generation of neuronal diversity by temporal mechanisms in the developing spinal cord

Acronym:

Start: 15. September 2021

Ende: 14. September 2024

Funding: DFG-Einzelförderung / Sachbeihilfe (EIN-SBH)

URL:

Leaders: Andreas Sagner

Description: In the vertebrate spinal cord different classes of neurons form the neuronal circuits that allow us to move and perceive our environment. During development, these distinct classes of neurons are generated in response to spatial cues that pattern the embryonic neural tube along its dorsal-ventral axis. This subdivision however is not sufficient to account for the complexity of neurons observed in the spinal cord - instead each neuronal class can be further divided into distinct subtypes based on molecular and functional characteristics. The signals and gene regulatory networks that orchestrate the specification of these neuronal subtypes and underlie their correct incorporation into circuits with specific functions are still largely unclear.My recent work uncovered a temporal dimension to neuronal subtype specification in the spinal cord, which depends on cohorts of transcription factors (TFs) that are specific for early, intermediate, or late-born neurons. Here, I propose that this temporal TF program is essential and works in combination with the spatial TFs that define the identity of the distinct neuronal classes to establish neuronal diversity and the correct patterns of neuronal connectivity in the spinal cord. To test this hypothesis, I plan to combine in vitro stem cell differentiation with genomic assays, in vivo genetic tracing and functional perturbation approaches. The key aims of this proposal are to:1. Characterize the signals and gene regulatory networks orchestrating the temporal stratification of neurons in the spinal cord,2. Investigate the molecular logic by which spatial and temporal TFs jointly establish neuronal subtype-specific patterns of gene Expression, 3. Delineate how temporal TF expression in the embryo underlies neuronal diversity and connectivity in the adult spinal cord. The expected results of my proposal will provide a detailed understanding how spatial and temporal patterning systems jointly specify neuronal diversity and underlie the correct formation of neuronal circuitry in the mouse spinal cord. Ultimately, such mechanistic understanding of cell fate and connectivity will underpin the development of novel disease models and therapies for neurodegenerative movement disorders and spinal injuries.

PancREatic Cancer OrganoiDs rEsearch Network

Acronym: PRECODE

Start: 1. October 2019

Ende: 30. September 2023

Funding: EU - 8. Rahmenprogramm - Horizon 2020

URL: https://precode-project.eu/contact-us/

Leaders: Christian Pilarsky

Description:

The role of physical forces between epithelia and their external environment in tissue morphogenesis

Acronym: Emmy Noether-Programm

Start: 1. October 2021

Ende: 30. September 2024

Funding: DFG-Einzelförderung / Sachbeihilfe (EIN-SBH)

URL:

Leaders: Stefan Münster

Description:

Trusted Ecosystem of Applied Medical Data eXchange; Teilvorhaben: FAU@TEAM-X

Acronym: TEAM-X

Start: 1. January 2022

Ende: 31. December 2024

Funding: Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft und Technologie (BMWi)

URL: https://www.mad.tf.fau.de/research/projects/team-x/

Leaders: Jörg Franke, Björn Eskofier, Christian Jäger

Description:

Acronym: ForInter

Start: 1. March 2019

Ende: 28. February 2023

Funding: Bayerisches Staatsministerium für Wissenschaft und Kunst (StMWK) (seit 2018)

URL: https://www.bayfor.org/en/bavarian-expertise/bavarian-research-associations/associations/association/forinter.html

Leaders: Beate Winner

Description:

The human brain has a complicated architecture of divers and specialised cells, like neurons, glial and microglial cells. These cells form and interact in functional and dynamic circuits, thus providing the basis for the complex functions of the human brain.

Even though our understanding of the human brain has made tremendous advances in recent decades, many questions about the physiological and pathological functions of the human brain remain unanswered until to date. The structural analysis of the brain can be performed in post mortem brain tissue, but these neuroanatomical and pathological studies only represent a static approach and reflect the specific variables only at a fixed point of time. For a deeper understanding, dynamic and functional investigations of the interaction between the different cells in the human brain are required.

Therefore, the Bavarian Consortium ForInter aims to investigate the interaction between the different cell types in the human brain using multidimensional cell culture systems.

Systems medicine of melanoma and autoimmunity in the context of immunotherapy

Acronym: MelAutim

Start: 1. October 2019

Ende: 30. September 2022

Funding: Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung (BMBF)

URL: https://www.melautim.net

Leaders: Julio Vera González, Carola Berking, Lucie Heinzerling

Description:

Immune-checkpoint inhibitors have shown clinical activity in advanced melanoma, with significant survival benefit and response rates for anti-CTLA-4 (19%), anti-PD-1 (36-44%) and combined therapy (58-61%). While responses can be durable, a significant proportion of patients show autoimmune side effects, including autoimmune colitis, hepatitis and musculoskeletal side effects. In about one third of cases patients exhibit side effects in more than one organ system. In a fraction of the patients autoimmunity is present prior the therapy and may exacerbate. To be able to predict the risk of appearance of these severe autoimmune side effects would enable physicians to personalize the anticancer treatment to the patient and understanding mechanisms of these autoimmune reactions could improve therapy.

The aim of the project is to improve our understanding of the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying the interplay between autoimmunity and cancer, with an interest on the role of predisposing factors in the appearance or exacerbation of autoimmunity under immunotherapy. The project uses melanoma, inflammatory bowel and rheumatoid diseases as models. Under the systems medicine paradigm, we will generate in vivo/patient data-based molecular networks and multi-level models accounting for the mechanisms behind the immune activation involved in the autoimmunity-cancer-immunotherapy axis. Combining data and network analysis, computer simulations and model experimentation, we will generate molecular and phenotypic signatures accounting for the emergence or enhancement of autoimmunity under checkpoint inhibitor therapy, and will correlate these signatures with published and de novo patient data. We expect the project to pave the way towards the translation into clinical practice of systems medicine-based methods for monitoring autoimmunity in melanoma patients receiving immunotherapy and establish a basis for rationale treatment approaches for autoimmunity in cancer patients.

BRAIn mechaNIcs ACross Scales: Linking microstructure, mechanics and pathology

Acronym: BRAINIACS

Start: 1. October 2019

Ende: 30. September 2022

Funding: DFG-Einzelförderung / Emmy-Noether-Programm (EIN-ENP)

URL: https://www.brainiacs.forschung.fau.de/

Leaders: Silvia Budday

Description:

The current research project aims to develop microstructurally motivated mechanical models for brain tissue that facilitate early diagnostics of neurodevelopmental or neurodegenerative diseases and enable the development of novel treatment strategies. In a first step, we will experimentally characterize the behavior of brain tissue across scales by using versatile testing techniques on the same sample. Through an accompanying microstructural analysis of both cellular and extra-cellular components, we will evaluate the complex interplay of brain structure, mechanics and function. We will also experimentally investigate dynamic changes in tissue properties during development and disease, due to changes in the mechanical environment of cells (mechanosensing), or external loading. Based on the simultaneous analysis of experimental and microstructural data, we will develop microstructurally motivated constitutive laws for the regionally varying mechanical behavior of brain tissue. In addition, we will develop evolution laws that predict remodeling processes during development, homeostasis, and disease. Through the implementation within a finite element framework, we will simulate the behavior of brain tissue under physiological and pathological conditions. We will predict how known biological processes on the cellular scale, such as changes in the tissue’s microstructure, translate into morphological changes on the macroscopic scale, which are easily detectable through modern imaging techniques. We will analyze progression of disease or mechanically-induced loss of brain function. The novel experimental procedures on the borderline of mechanics and biology, together with comprehensive theoretical and computational models, will form the cornerstone for predictive simulations that improve early diagnostics of pathological conditions, advance medical treatment strategies, and reduce the necessity of animal and human tissue experimentation. The established methodology will further open new pathways in the biofabrication of artificial organs.

SMART Start: Smarte Sensorik in der Schwangerschaft - Ein integratives Konzept zur digitalen, präventiven Versorgung schwangerer Frauen

Acronym: SMART Start

Start: 1. March 2020

Ende: 31. August 2022

Funding: Bundesministerium für Gesundheit (BMG)

URL: https://www.smartstart.fau.de/

Leaders: Björn Eskofier

Description:

Sensorische Anwendungen finden heutzutage durch moderne Technologien (v.a. Smartphone/Smart-Watch vermittelt) vielfach Einzug in den Alltag. In diesem Zuge stellt sich die Frage, inwieweit auch sensorische Messungen der regulären Schwangeren-Vorsorge (Herzfrequenz, Blutdruck, Sonografie und Kardiotokografie), die dem Standard nach in der Hand des Arztes oder der Ärztin liegen, in den Smart-Home Bereich transferiert werden und valide Ergebnisse liefern, sowie zukünftig die Klinik-besuche schwangerer Frauen reduzieren bzw. spezifizieren können. Im Fokus der Fragestellung dieses Projekts steht die klinische Usability, die gesellschaftliche Akzeptanz, die Compliance durch die betroffenen Akteure und die Weiterentwicklung dieser sensorischen Techniken im häuslichen Bereich sowie damit assoziierte ethisch/medizinrechtliche Themen.

Ziel des Projektes ist, die Vorsorge für schwangere Frauen zu optimieren und zu vereinfachen, indem sowohl bewährte als auch innovative Sensorik in die Heim-Versorgung überführt und mit künstlicher Intelligenz und maschinellem Lernen analysiert wird. In diesem Projekt werden direkte Anwendungsmöglichkeiten zur Implementierung der Smart-Sensorik geschaffen, welche die optimierte Gesundheitsbetreuung durch die Ärztin oder den Arzt, aber auch die eigene Kontrolle und Optimierung der metabolischen Aktivität durch die schwangeren Frauen ermöglicht. Als Zielgruppe sind schwangere Frauen und deren Partner/innen angesprochen, die offen sind für die gesundheitsbezogene Anwendung moderner, digitaler Medien (Smartphone, Smart-Watch etc.).