Medicine

A team of three European researchers will develop an imaging method to non-invasively measure the stiffness of moving organs such as the heart. The researchers will be supported by the European Research Council.

The Empa Innovation Award recognizes outstanding projects that bridge the gap between the laboratory and industry. This year, a team of researchers from Empa and ETH Zurich is being honored for an innovative sensor system: SensAL warns quickly and precisely of life-threatening complications after abdominal surgery.

Imad El Haddad analyses the chemical composition and health impacts of particulate matter at the Center for Energy and Environmental Sciences of the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI. 

In dementia diseases such as Alzheimer's, incorrectly folded proteins accumulate in the brain. Empa researchers have now resolved a particularly active species of protein fibrils with unprecedented precision. The formation of potentially toxic molecules on the surface of protein fibrils was studied from early to late stages spanning over a period of hours. The researchers recently published their results in the journal Science Advances.

Pioneer Fellow Hao Liu uses lasers to produce microfilament structures to grow biological tissue in the lab for research and medicine – from muscle tissue to cartilage. Now he’s working to ready this technology for the market.

Researchers at the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI have succeeded in elucidating the structure of specific photoreceptors. With their help, it may be possible to switch cellular activities on and off using light. This capability could become an important tool in biological research and medical applications.