Three consortia, in which TU/e is involved as a research partner, will receive more than €55 million in funding from the NWO for the construction or renovation of essential research facilities. These are research projects that focus on advanced equipment and techniques for better viewing and studying the human body and materials.
AMICE
The AMICE (Advanced Multi-Modal Imaging Centres) research project is a national consortium led by Erasmus Medical Centre. The project has received a €19.6 million grant to develop a national infrastructure for advanced imaging techniques and make it available to researchers. This will enable them to extract much more information from the images. AMICE also encourages the reuse of images in order to increase scientific efficiency. In addition to TU/e, the universities of Maastricht and Wageningen and all Dutch academic hospitals are affiliated with the project.
Combining techniques
Massimo Mischi , Full Professor Biomedical Signal Processing, explains the role of TU/e within AMICE: "The research groups Signal Processing Systems and Biomedical Diagnostics Lab are assisting in preparing and combining data from ultrasound and MRI, and in creating ultrasound images."
By combining different techniques, known as multimodal imaging, a richer and more detailed picture of biological and disease processes is created. Mischi explains: "Once the new infrastructure is up and running, we will be able to conduct studies that provide more insight into how the body works. There will also be better ways to identify diseases more quickly and accurately."
Dutch X-ray Characterisation Platform (DXCP)
The national consortium DXCP will receive a €15.8 million grant to set up a new X-ray research centre. The centre, led by the University of Groningen, will operate as a virtual institute with hubs in Groningen, Utrecht and Eindhoven at the TU/e. It will offer researchers access to advanced X-ray techniques, enabling them to gain a better understanding of the structure of materials. This insight is needed to develop smart materials such as batteries, solar cells and coatings, which contribute to a more sustainable society.
Below the surface
Emiel Hensen , Full Professor Inorganic Materials Chemistry, explains his research group's involvement in this project: "At TU/e, we operate several machines that perform these X-ray techniques. We are already collaborating with other university groups and industrial research laboratories on this."
"These new techniques also allow us to look beneath the surface of materials. This enables us to study batteries and solar cells in greater detail, at the nanoscale. In the long term, this will have a major impact on society, because nanomaterials will play an important role in solving problems related to energy and raw materials", according to Hensen.
BioMotive
The BioMotive research project (Imaging the biomechanics of the internal human body during movement) is led by UMC Utrecht and has twelve national research partners in addition to TU/e. The project received a twenty million euro grant to develop a new generation of MRI scanners that allow researchers to scan the human body while walking or cycling. These new techniques make it possible to better understand how muscles, organs and metabolism work together during movement. This provides a better understanding of how the body functions during health and disease.
Better understanding
Several researchers from TU/e are involved in various fields of application within the project: Massimo Mischi (Electrical Engineering), Wouter Huberts , Richard Lopata and Keita Ito (all three from Biomedical Engineering). "It will allow all of us to capture novel data from human subjects and patients which was never possible before. This will enable us to further develop our own core research interests," explains Ito, Full Professor Orthopaedic Biomechanics.
He continues: "From a scientific viewpoint it will revolutionize our understanding of how biomechanical forces shape anatomy and the physiology of the cardiovascular and musculoskeletal systems. This leads to advances in personalized medicine and treatments."
Research infrastructure
The Ministry of Education, Culture and Science (OCW) makes the funds for these studies available to NWO via the National Roadmap for Large-scale Research Infrastructure ( GWI ). The aim is to enable the construction or renovation of essential research facilities.
