uCAIR aims to achieve breakthrough results by developing a laser platform that ingeniously combines non-linear optical fibers, optronics, wide-band coherent Raman, and artificial intelligence technologies to enable imaging at video rates and tracking of cells and biological tissues with enhanced chemometric digitalisation.
Most diseases, including cancers, viral infections, neurodegenerative conditions, cardiovascular and musculoskeletal disorders, originate from a disruption at the molecular level of the biological cell lifecycle. Each year, the cost to the EU amounts to approximately 1.9 million lives and around €200 billion in healthcare, informal care, and productivity loss for cancers alone. Current live cell imaging tools can only offer a limited view of the in vivo and in vitro microenvironments where diseases develop and progress. This results in a gap in our understanding of the biochemical cellular makeup and how their disturbance leads to disease. By improving the accuracy and speed of imaging and analysis, this gap can be narrowed, allowing for the development of novel medical treatments and diagnostics tailored to patients’ specific conditions.
uCAIR brings together successful R&D photonics SMEs, research laboratories in optics and cell biology, and world-leading microscopists and clinicians to create an innovative, versatile, and practical multimodal photonics platform that will enhance and expedite the examination of cells by scientists and healthcare professionals. uCAIR aims to achieve breakthrough results by developing a laser platform that ingeniously combines non-linear optical fibers, optronics, wide-band coherent Raman, and artificial intelligence technologies to enable imaging at video rates and tracking of cells and biological tissues with enhanced chemometric digitalisation. The new coherent light sources will be suitable for fundamental research microscopes and microfluidic channels, as well as for medical imaging instruments, facilitating a value chain for new biomarker discoveries and translation into medical endoscopy, such as during cystoscopy and bladder cancer resection. Advancing the technology to TRL 6 will provide a first-mover advantage with a sustainable supply chain. In this way, uCAIR aims to sustain European leadership in photonics, delivering continuous innovation and outstanding benefits for its economy and the health of its population