Projects UniOvi - MAGNES
Ongoing Projects
Ayudas a organismos públicos para apoyar las actividades de I+D+I de sus grupos de investigación (Principado de Asturias)
This project develops the three main research lines of the group, whose activity plan for the 2022-2023 triennium is summarized below:
- Improvement of the magnetocaloric properties of materials with MEC through deformation.
- New geometries of magnetocaloric materials using thin films and magnetic heterostructures.
- Elastocaloric effect in shape memory alloys.
- Effects of nitrogenation in solid solutions (R, R’)Fe12-xMx, with different ratios of rare earths by arc furnace, and homogenization heat treatments.
- Microstructures and controlled phases in Heusler and/or half-Heusler type materials of the MM’M”NiSn (M,M’,M”=Ti, Zr, Hf) family with thermoelectric properties.
- Development of a portable inductor-capacitive sensor for the detection of magnetic nanoparticles with the options of bioactive detector coil or combination with paper immunoassays with integrated detector coil.
- Encapsulation and controlled assembly of magnetic nanoparticles.
- New biofunctional magnetic particles to optimize radiofrequency biodetection (new compositions and geometries).
- Immuno-separation, concentration and magnetic repositioning to improve the sensitivity of bioquantification.
- Magnetic hyperthermia and laserthermia for therapy and antibacterial action.
- Modify the electrical resistivity of steel grades for railway rail through treatments that affect different microstructural parameters.
- Modify the magnitude of parasitic currents by applying surface treatments.
- Optimization of the magnetic behaviors observed in nanobainitic microstructures of steels.
- Optimization of precipitates in steels.
- New nanostructured materials with superior resistance to radiation.
- Reverse design of advanced materials with low CRM content.
Proyectos de I+D+i en red 2022-2024 (Proyectos Concertados)
This project aims to develop a highly innovative rapid diagnostic test technology to face crucial challenges in health, environment, and food control, by a new approach relying on superparamagnetic nanostructures. COVID19 spread is a good example of the urgent need for new rapid diagnostic test techniques. Other are marine phycotoxins expansion, and freshwater poisonous bacteria blooming.
Pneumonia is the leading cause of death from infectious diseases worldwide and the leading cause of individual causes of child mortality. Despite these records, establishing the aetiology of pneumonia remains challenging because the site of infection (lung tissue) is not easily accessible for specimen collection, which is particularly challenging in children.
Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococcus) is the highly contagious bacterium behind most pneumonia, while Mycoplasma pneumoniae is the origin of many atypical pneumonia, often co-infection with the former. However, pneumonia can also be caused by viruses. Determining the etiologic agent of pneumonia is essential to guiding the therapy (avoiding antibiotics over-prescription) and prevention strategies.
In the NEUMOSENSOR project, we aim at a rapid diagnostic test in urine for pneumococcal pneumonia, with sufficient sensitivity and specificity for both groups, adults and children, to yield a reliable response without additional sophisticated techniques.
To this end, a multidisciplinary consortium will collaborate in developing a portable and affordable device and kit to detect pneumolysin (biomarker protein for pneumococcus) in urine.
Proyectos de I+D+i en red 2021-2023 (Proyectos Concertados)
The collaborating company, Táctica Corporativa S L, is committed to anticipating a potential ciguatoxin (CTX) contamination crisis in Europe and globally. For this reason, the directors of the Táctica business group contacted the MAGNES research group when learning about their research in the field of biodetection.
Magnetic sensing is an excellent candidate for biological sensing applications, as magnetism is a non-contact interaction that can provide long-lasting, quantitative signals that are free from optical interference. In addition, magnetism allows the added advantage of remote manipulation, which can be used for immunomagnetic separation of the molecule of interest and sample enrichment, thus improving biodetection performance.
Proyectos de COLABORACIÓN PÚBLICO-PRIVADA, DEL PROGRAMA ESTATAL PARA IMPULSAR LA INVESTIGACIÓN CIENTÍFICO-TÉCNICA Y SU TRANSFERENCIA 2021-23
The increase in the need for transport, both for passengers and goods, in a globalized world that is expanding both demographically and economically implies a series of problems such as infrastructure congestion (airspace, ports and highways), emissions of polluting substances and dependence on fossil fuels. These considerations lead to the need for efficient, effective, safe and environmentally friendly transport. It is in this scenario that the concept of the Hyperloop arises. It is a very high-speed transport concept (over 500 km/h) in tubes working in a low-pressure environment, deployed over a range of distances, ideally between 500 and 1,500 km.
Despite not yet existing in a commercial system, the market is growing quickly, with new players joining the global efforts to develop this new means of transport. Among them is the Spanish company Zeleros. Zeleros is a Spanish technological and industrial company that designs, develops, manufactures and maintains hyperloop vehicles. Zeleros technology presents a more economically competitive technological solution based on a simpler and more robust launch technology for vehicles and a significant cost reduction in infrastructure throughout the constant speed zone.
The main objective of the HYPERMAT project is to develop and experimentally validate the technological solutions for the acceleration or launch, levitation and guidance, sensorization and energy input systems of an ultra-fast hyperloop train, through a small-scale prototype that integrates said subsystems and that allows reproducing a large part of the operating conditions of a system on a real scale. It will start from a conceptual solution that has already been tested and these systems will be brought to a level of technological maturity TRL5 through tests in a relevant environment. The final construction parameters and the operating characteristics will be integrated into an economic model defining the most competitive and sustainable mobility application.
Past Projects
Reference: MINECO-18-MAT2017-84959-C2-1-R
The aim of this project is the development of a biosensor for detection of colorectal cancer (CC) biomarkers as a non-invasive technique in the early diagnosis of the disease. For this it is necessary to coordinate the research group of the University of Oviedo with the medical team of the Hospital Universitario San Agustín, in Avilés.
The increasing incidence of CC in Spain and worldwide makes it necessary to develop effective, safe, and non-invasive devices for the early diagnosis of the disease. The current CC screening techniques have low sensitivity (fecal occult blood test) or are invasive and expensive (colonoscopy). Thus, the current demand is focused on safe, easy-to-use, noninvasive, and cost-effective devices, which may provide a real clinical support and reduce the overuse of the colonoscopy.
The proposed biosensor fulfills these criteria. The device will enable a rapid and highsensitivity analysis of biomarkers with increasing clinical utility, such as extracellular vesicles and circulating miRNA, accompanied by their validation for diagnosis and follow-up of patients with CC.
The key idea of the technique is the use of a novel system for SPNP (Superparamagnetic Nanoparticles) detection (recently identified and published by the authors) in combination with lateral flow immunoassays. For this application, the traditional coloured antibody labels, either gold or latex nanoparticles, are advantageously replaced by SPNP.
The two crucial aspects of the detection method are the sensing element and the superparamagnetic character of the SPNP. The sensing probe consists in a Cu-printed microtrack whose radiofrequency impedance is continuously monitored and which varies as a response to the SPNP’s proximity. This is the sensing property which is influenced by the switching magnetic moment of the particles. The interaction between the latter and the current flowing in the track is a particular kind of high frequency electromagnetic induction which produces a remarkable increase of the measured impedance of the circuit. The promptness of such interaction is one of the strengths of this detection system. Additionally, the impedance variation is directly proportional to the amount of SPNP which provides the quantitative detection. Amplication strategies will be investigated by
(i) agglomeration and vesicle encapsulation of SPNP,
(ii) better performing particle systems, and
(iii) microtracks of reduced dimensions obtained by sputtering.
The required low detection limits can be achieved by magnetic immunoconcentration coupled to the separation and ulterior immobilization in the nitrocellulose membrane, while the experimental device would allow detection/quantification. The design proposed in this project pursues those two requirements to provide as final output a fast, portable, friendly and low-cost device.
In order to validate the clinical utility of the sensor, healthy subjects, patients with adenoma and patients with CC will be recruited for a prospective study, which will compare the utility of extracellular vesicles and miRNA derived from peripheral blood as biomarkers.
The final prototype is expected to be easily adaptable to other pathologies, as well as convertible to solve other biodetection challenges in the food, environment, or crop-livestock fields.
Reference: MAT2016-81955-REDT
The enormous advances in nanotechnology go hand-in-hand with multidisciplinary approaches, from the design of novel materials to their final application. This proposal is aimed to group together different research teams devoted to nanoparticles (both organic and inorganic) to develop biotechnological applications. NanoBioAp net pursues to establish synergies, to strengthen initiated collaborations and to create new ones amongst the participant groups in order to work together and complementarily in the development of new or improved techniques and devices based on nanoparticles for therapeutic and diagnostic applications in Medicine, Biology, Food Safety, etc.
The applicants bring together a vast experience covering nanoparticle synthesis, both by classical and novel routes, their application to point-of-care bioanalytical devices, hyperthermia or controlled drug release, as well as a large variety of characterization techniques and standardized nanometrology methods so useful for industrial utilization.
The results of the net are expected to boost the research on nanoparticles contributing to their practical application and transfer to industry, as well as to coordinate dissemination activities directed to the society as a whole and very much in particular to young researchers who may in the future guarantee our country research on this interesting topic.
Reference: GRUPIN2018-185
The enormous advances in nanotechnology go hand-in-hand with multidisciplinary approaches, from the design of novel materials to their final application. This proposal is aimed to group together different research teams devoted to nanoparticles (both organic and inorganic) to develop biotechnological applications. NanoBioAp net pursues to establish synergies, to strengthen initiated collaborations and to create new ones amongst the participant groups in order to work together and complementarily in the development of new or improved techniques and devices based on nanoparticles for therapeutic and diagnostic applications in Medicine, Biology, Food Safety, etc.
The applicants bring together a vast experience covering nanoparticle synthesis, both by classical and novel routes, their application to point-of-care bioanalytical devices, hyperthermia or controlled drug release, as well as a large variety of characterization techniques and standardized nanometrology methods so useful for industrial utilization.
The results of the net are expected to boost the research on nanoparticles contributing to their practical application and transfer to industry, as well as to coordinate dissemination activities directed to the society as a whole and very much in particular to young researchers who may in the future guarantee our country research on this interesting topic.
Reference: FUO 368-18
Ciguatoxins (CTX) are lipophilic neurotoxins that are accumulated through the marine food chain as a result of the ingestion of toxin-producing dinoflagellates firstly by herbivorous fish. Although it is endemic in regions between latitudes 35º north and 35º south, the proliferation of ciguatera might boom due to both the globalization of trade and the expected sea temperature rise caused by climate change. Ciguatoxic fish cannot be identified by appearance, smell, or taste, and the assays traditionally used depend on very specialised and time-consuming techniques. Therefore, this is a perfect opportunity for a Point-of-Use dispositive, since there is a need for a quick test to detect the toxic fish before it arrives to the consumers and causes a public health problem.
In this project, we are trying to develop a lateral flow immunoassay able to detect and quantify CXTX-3C. The labels used are Superparamagnetic Iron Oxide Nanoparticles (SPIONs) to provide the quantification.
