Research portfolio 2024 School of Life Sciences

InconversationwithFalkoSchlottig

Since2022,theFHNWSchoolofLifeScienceshasfocused ondeepeningitscorescientificdisciplines,implementingdigital toolsandrenewingitscommitmenttoappliedresearchthatmattersto industryandgovernment.Prof.Dr.FalkoSchlottig,DirectoroftheFHNW SchoolofLifeSciences,commentsonkeyaspectsoftheschool’s strategyandvisionfor2035.

Collaborationisakeydriverofinnovation

Prof.Dr.Schlottig,whatroledoescollaboration playattheFHNWSchoolofLifeSciences?

UniversitiesofAppliedSciencesplayauniqueand importantroleinSwitzerland’seducationand economy.First,wecontributeresearchexpertise andcutting-edgefacilitiestoprojectswiththe privatesectorandgovernmentagencies,helping themaddresschallengesandanswerquestions. Second,thesecollaborativeresearchprojects offerundergraduateandpostgraduatestudents excitingopportunitiestoworkonrealworld situationsandneeds.WeadaptourBScandMSc programmeseachyear,toreflectchangeswesee inindustry.Thesuccessofourschoolisbuiltona dynamicinterplaybetweenresearchandeducation. Workingwithothershelpsusexcel.By selectingtherightpartnerstocollaboratewith, wearemoreinnovativethanwhenweworksolo. Thisphilosophyalsoapplieswithinourschool. Ourfourinstitutesworktogetheroncrossdisciplinaryprojects.Acollaborativeapproachis neededtosolvethechallengesofourtime.

Technologyfocus

Whicheducationalandscientificareashas theFHNWSchoolofLifeSciencesidentifiedas apriority?

Ourschoolismovingforwardindifferentareas. Wealwaysaimtokeeppacewithdevelopmentsin academiaandindustry.

Digitaltechnologiesarenowintegratedintoall ourBScprogrammes.We’reimplementinga combinationoflifesciencesandartificialintelligence,datascience,digitaltwins,automationand roboticsacrossourresearchareas,anddefining howstaffandstudentseffectivelyandethically workwithnewtools.Futurehealthisapriority topicidentifiedbytheFHNWthatourschoolcan makeimportantcontributionsto.

TheFHNWSchoolofLifeSciencesismoving forwardinappliedquantumcomputing.We’veestablishedanewresearchgroupinthisfield,andare workingcloselywithQuantumBaseltobring appliedresearchproblemstothetable seepage42).

Sustainablechemistryisgrowing,witha newBScprogrammeindevelopment.Several ofourresearchprojectscontributetotheFHNW’s zeroemissionpriorityandtoEUprojects.Grassrootseffortsinitiatedbytheschool’sresearchers areunderwaytomakeourlaboperations moresustainable.

It’scriticaltotakeastepforwardinapplying biobasedtechnologiesandothergreenmethods forproducingbasicchemicals.Thisisaneed sharedacrosstheindustrythatwillrequireusto beambitiousandworktogether.

Furthermore,theFHNWSchoolofLife Sciencesisstrengtheningitsactivitiesinbiotech, medtech,medinformatics,pharmatech,cell biologyanddiagnostics.

Internationalisation

WhatistheFHNWSchoolofLifeSciences‘local andinternationalpositioning?

TheFHNWSchoolofLifeSciencesoffersawealth ofinternationalstudyprogrammesandopportunitiestostudents.Beingwellconnectedtothe internationalenvironmentisourresponsibility. Manymultinationalcompaniesareestablishedin Switzerlandanddobusinessaroundtheworld. OurMScprogrammesinparticularneedto preparestudentsforthiscontext.Inparallel, UniversitiesofAppliedSciencesareattheservice oflocalbusinesses,citiesandcantons.Ourstaff andstudentsdevelopmanyvaluablebusiness relationshipsattheregionallevel.

NegotiationsforSwitzerland’sreassociationto HorizonEuropeareprogressingwell.Alreadyin 2024,researchersinSwitzerlandwereableto

Prof.Dr.FalkoSchlottigleadstheFHNWSchoolofLifeSciences.

participateintheERCAdvancedGrantscallas beneficiaries.In2025,Swissresearcherscan participateinthecallsfortheERCStartingGrant, SynergyGrantandConsolidatorGrant.Theseare allpositivesignalsthatthefullreassociationof SwitzerlandtoHorizonEuropeisaroundthe corner.Inthemeantime,ourresearchershave foundnewwaysofmakingmeaningfulcontributionstoEuropeanresearchprojects,severalof whichareshowcasedinthisbrochure.

Challengesfacingus

Thepandemicfollowedbytwowarshaveledto difficultconditionsaroundtheworld.Howhasthe FHNWSchoolofLifeSciencesfeltthisimpact? Forthemostpart,weareinaveryprivileged positionasamemberofaworld-leadinglife sciencesclusterhereinBasel.Likeothersinthe field,wewereaffectedbychangesinthepriceof energy,chemicalsandgases,aswellasother

strainsonthesupplychain.

Weareconfrontedbyuncertaintiesand changesinindustry,financeandsociety.That’s whyweaimtodevelopcriticalthinkinganda senseofself-responsibilityinourstudents. Listening,askingquestionsinordertopropose relevantsolutionsandnotbeingafraidtomakea change.Recognizingthatourresearchisimportantandhasthepotentialtomakeadifferencein theworld.

Peopleatthecentre

WhatistheFHNWSchoolofLifeSciences‘ visionfor2035?

Inadditiontothecollaborative,scientificand internationalaspectswe’vetalkedabout,akey elementisputtingpeopleatthecentre.It’sour staff’senthusiasmandideasthatdriveusforward. We’vebeenluckytoaddseveralnewteamleaders thatbringindustryexperienceandnetworkswith

“Inourcommunities, withindustry,for patientsandwith researchpeers,the peopleoftheFHNW SchoolofLifeSciences aredrivinginnovation forward.”

FalkoSchlottig

them.Ourgenderandculturaldiversityare increasing,andthisbringsagreaterrangeof perspectivestoourwork.

Harnessingourpotentialmeansempowering staff.Providingfreedomtooperateandtakingthe timetolistentoeachother.Askingourselves honestlywherewecanhavethemostimpactand settingprioritiestogetherhelpsusstayfocused. Asweembracenewworkanditsflexibility,we recognisethevalueofface-to-faceconversations andbeingpresentforourcolleaguesandclients. Inourcommunities,withindustry,forpatientsand withresearchpeers,thepeopleoftheFHNW SchoolofLifeSciencesaredrivinginnovation forward.

Inour communities

Ourworldisfacingunprecedented environmental,agriculturalandenergy challenges.TheFHNWSchoolof LifeSciencesactivelycontributesto developingsolutionsatthemunicipal, cantonal,nationalandinternational leveltofosterahighqualityoflife inourcommunities.

Waterexpertiseatthe serviceofourcommunities

Accesstocleandrinkingwaterisinequitableworldwide.About2 billionpeopleliveinwater-stressedcountries.Climatechangeand populationgrowthareputtingpressureonanalreadycritical situation.Waterresourcesarealsounderstrainfromtheagriculture industry,whichusesanestimated70%ofallfreshwaterworldwide.

Switzerland’sexpertiseinwaterconservation,managementand treatmentisinternationallyrecognised.Municipalandcantonal governmentsaswellasindustryarecontributingtotechnological advancesinunderstandingwastewaterandoptimizingitstreatment.

AttheInstituteforEcopreneurship,threeresearchgroupsare makingsignificantcontributionstolocal,nationalandglobalneeds forcleanwater.

Minimisingcombinedseweroverflow

MichaelThomann’steamisusingonlinesensors andmodellingtoexploitexistingwastewatercollection andtreatmentinfrastructure.

Incombinedsewersystems,rainwaterandwastewaterfromhouseholdsarecollectedtogether andmaketheirwaytowastewatertreatment plants.Heavyrainfallcancausethesecanalsto overflowbeforethewaterhasbeentreated.

Tocounterthis,Prof.Dr.MichaelThomann’s teamisparticipatingintheEuropeanproject StopUP,whichaimstoreducepollutioninreceivingwaters.Theteamisworkingcloselywith cantonBasel-Landschaft’sOfficeforIndustrial Operations(AIB),whichisresponsibleforsewers, wastewatertreatmentplants(WWTP)andlandfills.

AlthoughAIBmonitorstheamountofstormwaterdischargedfromtheirsewers,littleisknown aboutitsqualityandthusthepollutionload releasedintotheenvironmentduringcombined seweroverflowspills.Sewernetworksandrunoff dynamicsaresocomplexthatrepresentative samplingandlabanalysisarechallengingto implementineverydayoperation.

“Onlinesensorscancollectsufficientdata pointstocapturethedynamicsofevents.We aimtocorrelateparametersmeasuredwithour sensorswithtoxicologicallyrelevantpollutants suchasheavymetalsorcertainorganiccompounds”explainsMichaelThomann.Firstsamplingcampaignsandchemicalanalysesshowed promisingresults.Ecotoxicologytestingis

plannedin2024tofurtherunderstandenvironmentalimpactsofuntreatedwetweatherrunoff.

TheprojectalignswiththeSwissconcept tominimisetheecologicalimpactonreceiving watersthroughintegratedmanagementofthe sewernetworkandWWTP,includingoptimalutilisationofthehydraulicandbiochemicalcapacityof theWWTP.TheWWTPBirsusessequencingbatch reactorstotreatwastewater.Duringdryweather, thesereactorsexecutefullcleaningcycles.The plantswitchesintowetweathermodewhen heavyrainfallisexpected,sothereactorscan partiallytreatagreaterquantityofwater.

“Ourhypothesisisthatit’sprobablybeneficial toperformashortertreatment,evenifthat treatmentisabitlesseffective,thanhaving untreatedwaterspillover”saysMichaelThomann. “Modellingwillhelpusunderstandhowwecould furtherincreasetheinflowtotheWWTPduring rainyweatherwithoutundulycompromising treatmentefficiency.”

“Waterqualityinformationiskeyinanintegrated managementofsewernetworks,wastewater treatmentplantsandreceivingwaters”says GerhardKoch,HeadofTechnologyandDeputy HeadofAIBBirs.“TheFHNWhelpsusunderstand thisaspectbetterandtakeitintoaccountinour plantoperation.”

ResearchassociateBartoszKaweckicleanssensorsinstalled atthewastewatertreatmentplantBirs.

Communities: KantonBasel Landschaft;Europe Watersystem: Municipalwastewater Partners: 11partners Funding: EUHorizon101060428,SBFI22.00128

Prof.Dr.MichaelThomann Groupleader,Environmentaland watertechnologies +41612285334 michael.thomann@fhnw.ch

Howwelldoindustrialcompaniesknow theirwastewaters?

AtooldevelopedbyMiriamLanger’steamishelping industrybetteranswerthisquestion.

Themetal,pharmaceutical,chemical,cleaning andwastemanagementindustriesallneed tounderstandtheirwastewaterandcomplywith environmentalnorms.Whilechemicalanalyses canindicatethepresenceandconcentrationof targetedsubstances,theycannotpredictthe responsesoforganismsorcellstoacombination ofthesesubstances.Nordochemicalanalyses revealwhetherunknownsubstances,residues andmetabolitesarepresentiftheyarenot specificallysearchedfor.

Takinginspirationfromgapsidentifiedinan industryworkshop,Prof.Dr.MiriamLangerand ResearchAssociateDr.XeniaKlausfirstcollected nationalandinternationalknowledgeabout industrialwastewaterscreeningwithbioassays. Toanswerthechallengesthatcompaniesface, theycameupwiththeideatocreateapanelof biologicaltests.Theirtool,ABIScreen,combinesa time-efficientbiodegradationtestwithabattery ofrobust,broad-basedbioassays,including toxicitytothebacteriainthewastewatertreatmentplant,andeffectsonluminousbacteria, daphniaandalgae.Ifdesired,anAmes-testcan beincludedtodeterminewhethersubstancesin thewastewaterhavemutagenicpotential.

ABIScreeniscurrentlybeingdeployedinfive Swisscantons.Companiescollectsamplesof

theirwastewaterfromacombinedwaste streamorasub-streamofinterest.Theflasksare pickedupbytheInstituteforEcopreneurship andanalysedinitslabs,withthecostcoveredby theFederalOfficefortheEnvironmentandthe Swisscantonsinvolvedintheproject.Langer’s teamprovidesareadoutofkeyparametersin acomprehensiblereport,whichthecompanycan usetobothtreatandpreventproblems–orin manycases,confirmthesuccessoftheirwastewatertreatmentperformance.

Sincetheprojectbeganin2023,over50 companieshaveparticipated.Theyvaluethe informationtheyreceiveabouttheirwastewater, theconfidentialityoftheprocessandtheability totakemattersintotheirownhands.Somehave requestedfollow-upscreeningofsub-streamsso theycanzeroinonspecificissues.Thecontact betweenmembersofLanger’steamandindustry helpsstimulatedialogue.

“We’reveryhappywithwhatwe’veachieved” saysKlaus.“Companieshaverealisedthat performingbioassaysisnotaslong,complex orexpensiveastheymightthink,anditcomplementschemicalanalysisnicely.Theproject isencouragingthemtomeasuremoreoften andcheckthattheirtreatmentprocesses areworking.”

Industryclientsandgovernmentagencies agree.“Infuture,ABIScreencouldhelpusto identifycriticalsubstancesinourwastewater moreeasilyandeliminatethematsourcewherever possible”saysChristineWegmannfrom dsm-firmenich.

“Thecombinationofdegradabilitytestsand bioassaysinABIScreenenablesaholistic characterisationofaspecificwastewaterin additiontochemicalanalysesandsimultaneous evaluationofthecompany’sownwastewater treatment.Tracingtoxicandnon-biodegradable substancesinwastewaterbacktotheirsource helpscompaniestofindoutabouttherequired state-of-the-arttechniquesandtherefore representsaddedvalue”saysSaskiaZimmermann-Steffens,WaterDivision,FederalOfficefor theEnvironment.

Inthenextphaseoftheproject,Langer’steam willpublishanonymousbiotestresultsina databaseaccessibletoparticipatingcompanies, allowingthemtocomparemetricswithintheir industrysector.Thedatabaseisexpectedtogo livein2025,withadetailedanalysisofcombined resultsby2026.

Asmorecompaniesseevalueinthesetests andthevolumeoftestingincreases,theFHNW SchoolofLifeSciencesplanstotransferthe

knowhowtoprivatesectorlabs,helpingthem expandtheirserviceofferings.

“Thisprojecttrulyillustratesthevalueofthe FHNW’sappliedresearchexpertiseforSwissindustryandgovernment,andisanactivecontributiontofuturegoodwaterquality”saysLanger.

Community: Switzerland(CantonsAG,BL,GE,VD,ZH)

Watersystem: Industrialwastewater Financing/Support: FederalOfficeforthe Environment(FOEN)Switzerland,CantonsofArgau, Basellandschaft,Geneva,VaudandZurich Partners: VerbandSchweizerAbwasser und Gewässerschutzfachleute

Prof.Dr.MiriamLanger

Groupleader,Ecotoxicology +41612285883 miriam.langer@fhnw.ch

Dr.XeniaKlaus

Scientificassociate,Ecotoxicology +41612285635 xenia.klaus@fhnw.ch

TechnicalspecialistPatrikEckerttakeswastewatersamples fortheFHNWInstituteforEcopreneurship.

Asystemicapproachtosafewater

MarynaPeterandherprojectteamarepreventingdisease throughhandwashingtechnology,behaviouralscience, effectivemanagementandlong-termrelationships

Over45%ofprimaryhealthcarefacilitiesand50% ofschoolsinlow-andmiddle-incomecountriesdo nothaveaccesstohandwashingfacilities,basic hygieneandwatersupplysystemsnecessaryto preventdiseasetransmission.Inresponsetothis challenge,Dr.MarynaPeterandherteamatthe InstituteforEcopreneurshipansweredacallfrom theSwissAgencyforDevelopmentandCooperationwithaprojectcalledHands4Health.Theprojectproposesanapproachtosupportwater,sanitationandhygiene(WASH)systemsthatreduce diarrhoeaamongchildrenatschoolsandprevent transmissionofinfectionsinhealthcarefacilities. Comingfromabackgroundinenvironmental engineering,Peteristheinventorofagravitydrivenmembranetechnologythatfilterswater andremovespathogenicmicroorganisms.Itcan beusedfortreatingdrinkingwater,butalsoto recyclewater.Gravit’eausystemsusethis technologyforhandwashing,reusingthesame

waterforseveralweeksbeforeitisreplaced.By providingasourceofwaterforhandwashingonly, thetechnologyhelpsconservedrinkingwater, whichisimportantduringemergenciesandin water-scarceareas.Peter’snot-for-profitassociationGravit’eauoffersthedesignunderopen accesstocommunities,wholearntoproducethe systemthemselveswiththesupportofassociationmembers.WhenPeterjoinedtheFHNW SchoolofLifeSciences,shenotonlybroughtthis technologicallegacywithher,butalsothevision todeployitusingasystemicapproach.

TheHands4Healthprojectsheleadsjointly withherWASHteamisactiveinMali,BurkinaFaso, NigeriaandPalestine.TheconsortiumiscomposedofresearchersfromtheFHNW,theSwiss TropicalandPublicHealthInstitute,ÉcolePolytechniqueFédéraledeLausanneandthe PalestinianPolytechnicUniversity.Alongside themarenon-governmentalorganisationsTerre

deshommes,CesviandSkatFoundation,aswell asprivatesectorpartnersRanasandMartin Systems.Theteamworkscloselywithlocal governmentsandcommunityrepresentatives, focusingonimprovingwater,sanitationand hygieneservicesatoff-gridschoolsandhealth carefacilitieslocatedinconflict-affectedareas.

Thefirststepisdevelopingasharedunderstandingofthecontext-specificchallenges anddefiningacommongoaltoworktoward. “Eachsituationisdifferent,andit’scrucialto engagelocalstakeholdersattheoutsetsothat wecanprioritisetheneedseffectivelyand sustainablyandunderstandthebarriers”says Peter.“NGOslikeourpartnersTerredeshommes andCesvihavelong-standingrelationshipswith communities,localgovernments,schoolsand healthcarefacilitiesandhelpusbuildtrust.”

Akeypartneroftheproject,Ranas,iscontributingtheirmodelofbehaviourchangeto

SchoolchildreninaprimaryschoolinMaiduguri,BornoState, NigeriauseaGravit`eauhandwashingsystem.

“Ourgoalisbroadpublic disseminationofasystemic approachtocommunities andNGOs,sotheycantest andimplementittoincrease sustainabilityandimpactof theirWASHprogrammes.”

MarynaPeter

understandmotivatorsforandbarrierstohandwashinginschoolchildrenandhealthcarefacility staff.Factorssuchasriskperceptions,attitudes, normsandvalues,abilitiesandself-regulationare importantdriversofbehaviour.Foreachcountry, behaviouralfactorsthatcanimproveconsistency ofhandwashingpracticeswereidentified.Correspondingbehaviourchangeactivitiescanthenbe selectedfromactivitycataloguesthatare preparedwithintheproject,specificallytargeted totheschools’andhealthcarefacilities’contexts.

Peter’steamiscontributingoverallproject leadershipaswellashardwareinterventions, monitoringtechnologiesandimpactevaluation. Theyareevaluatingsensorsforthehandwashing stationsthatmeasurewaterlevel,andsupporting NGOsandauthoritiesinestablishingeffective monitoringprocessesusingKobo based datacollectionappslinkedtodashboards.Finally, theyoffersimplehow-toguidesforplanning

improvementstowatersystems,maintaining watertanksandchlorinatingwater.

“Thisprojectisnotonlyaboutgettingscientific results”saysPeter.“Ourgoalisbroadpublic disseminationofasystemicapproachtocommunitiesandNGOs,sotheycantestandimplement ittoincreasethesustainabilityandimpactof theirWASHprogrammes.”

Since2021,Hands4Healthhasworkedin26 schoolsand24healthcarefacilities,withadditionalimplementationsplannedin24healthcare facilitiesand26schoolsbytheendof2024, reachingnearly100,000people.

Communities: HealthcarefacilitiesandschoolsinMali, BurkinaFaso,NigeriaandPalestine Waterandsanitationsystems: Recyclingwater forhandwashing;Chlorination;Rehabilitationof infrastructure;Behaviourchange;Digitalisedmonitoring andimpactevaluation

Partners: 10partners

Funding: SwissAgencyforDevelopmentand Cooperation Transform2020

Dr.MarynaPeter Groupleader,Water,sanitation andhygiene(WASH) +41612285792 maryna.peter@fhnw.ch

Letthesunshinein

Ensuringsustainabilityofnew photovoltaicmaterials

Perovskites-Didyouknow?

Perovskiteisamineralcomposedofcalcium titaniumoxide.Itscrystalstructurehasinspired thedevelopmentofaclassofmaterials,also calledperovskites,whichfeaturetwopositively chargedionsandthreenegativelychargedions.

Perovskitesolarcells(PSCs containcompounds withtheperovskitestructure,mostoftenmethylammoniumleadhalides.Theyofferahighabsorptioncoefficientcoupledwithsimplicityandlow productioncost.IncorporationofcarbonelectrodesinPSCscanfurtherimprovetheirsustainability,usingfewercriticalrawmaterials.However, therearealsovoicesexpressingconcernsabout environmentalcompatibilityduetotheirlead content,whichislowbutpresent.

Perovskitesolarcellscanbeprintedasthin, flexiblefilmsforapplicationsinbuildings,vehicles andelectronicdevices.Intandemperovskitecells, aperovskitecellislayeredontopofatraditional siliconcell,whichsignificantlyboostsitsenergy conversion.PSCscanalsobeusedalonetopower smallvehiclessuchasdrones.Assolarpanelsize, locationandenergyneedsvary,PSCscanprovide newoptionstohelpdiversifythesolarmarket andmeetcleanenergytargets.

Netzeroby2050 thisgoalisattheheartofthe EU’sGreenDeal.Toachieveit,thedeploymentof solarphotovoltaictechnologiesmustbescaledup exponentially.Newmaterialsofferaleapforward inthecapacityofsolarpanelstoabsorband convertenergy,butit’simportantnottolosesight ofsustainabilityconsiderationsrelatingtotheir production,useandendoflife.

Dr.MarkusLenzandhisteamattheInstitute forEcopreneurshipareleadingthechargeininvestigatingthesustainabilityofnewphotovoltaic materials.Specializinginthecirculareconomyof metalsandminerals,theyareparticipatingintwo EUHorizonprojects,namelyNexusandPearl, toexamineifperovskitescanbesafelyusedinthe nextgenerationofsolarpanels.Inparallel,they areworkingonrecyclingperovskitessothatthey willnotbecomeawasteprobleminthefuture.

Perovskitecellscontainminimalamountsof lead,withaprotectivelayerofglassorplastic designedtocontainit.Lenz’steamisconducting outdoorleachingteststodetermineifthecellsare hermetic.Todothis,theyinstalledseveral perovskitepanelsontheroofoftheFHNWSchool ofLifeSciencesinMuttenzthatareexposedto real-lifeweatherconditions.Temperature,light, moistureandwindvarythroughouttheyear,and thepanelsaresubjecttomoreextremeweather

eventssuchashail.Metalquantificationtests performedonrainwatersamplescollectedfrom thepanelshaveshownverylowpredicted environmentalconcentrations,comparableto thosepermittedindrinkingwater.Withinthe Nexusproject,furtherfacilitiesarenowbeing installedinBolzanoandValenciatoensurethat perovskitescanbesafelyoperatedunder differentclimateconditions.“Wecurrentlysee littlereasontobeconcernedaboutthepossible environmentalimpactsofleadduringtheuse phase”saysLenz.

Butwhatifthecellweretobedamaged?To findout,Lenz’steamsimulatesmoreextreme weathereventsinacontrolledenvironment.Inthe Pearlproject,theyexposeperovskitemodulesto higherUVradiation,createdefects holes usinga laser,andlookatwhetherbacteriacoulddamage protectiveplasticlayers.

Andwhenthemodulesreachtheirendof life?Recoveryandrecyclingofcriticalmineralsis keytosolidifyinganindependentEuropean supplychainandensuringsustainabilityofsolar andbatterypower.Usingtheirexpertisein hydrometallicrecovery,Lenz’steamhasdemonstratedforthefirsttimehowwateralone issufficienttorecoverpureleadiodide(PbI2) fromperovskites.

Lenz‘steamconductsoutdoorleachingteststoassessthesafetyofperovskite photovoltaicpanelsinstalledontheroofoftheFHNWCampusinMuttenz.

Therecoveredleadiodidecanbeusedto producenewperovskitematerials,whiletheold cellsarenolongerconsideredhazardouswaste,a win-winsituation.

InnovativesolarfirmsparticipatingintheNexus andPearlprojectsaregratefulfortheenvironmentalfatetestingandmaterialrecyclingdone byLenz’steam.

OxfordPV,whosetaworldrecordinenergy conversionof28.6%fortheircommercialsizedperovskite-on-silicontandemsolarcellin January2024,isworkingtowardatargetof>30% formodulepowerconversionefficiencyinthe Nexusproject.

SauleTechnologies,whoisparticipatingin thePearlproject,specialisesinprintingperovskite solarcellsonthin,flexiblesubstratesatlow temperatures.

“Inthepastdecade,perovskitePVhasgone fromalabcuriositytoapowerhousewiththe

potentialtodemocratisecleanenergy.AtSaule Technologies,werecognisetheurgencyofthe climatecrisisandarecommittedtoharnessing thistechnologyresponsibly,minimisingenvironmentalimpactsateverystageofdevelopment andproduction.ThroughthePEARLprojectwe aregainingcrucialinsights,ensuringasustainable futureforthecleanenergycomingfromour perovskitePVtechnology”saysDr.Konrad Wojciechowski,ChiefScienceOfficeratSaule.

“Ourroleisneithertoengageingreenwashing, nortogeneratealarmism”saysLenz.“Inthese projects,we’reprovidingscientificfactsthatcan helpmanagepossiblerisksofperovskites,determinetheirenvironmentalandsocialacceptabilityandfacilitatetheiradoption.Wealso hopeourmethodscontributetoscaling-upand broadlydeployingrecyclingprocessesfor criticalminerals.”

“We’reprovidingscientific factsthatcanhelpmanage possiblerisksofperovskites, determinetheirenvironmental andsociallyacceptability andfacilitatetheiradoption.”

MarkusLenz

Community: Europe

Financing/Support:

Nexus:HorizonEurope(GA101075330)andSERI (22.00314)

Pearl:HorizonEurope(GA101122283)andSERI (23.00383)

Partners:

Nexus:12partnersincludingOxfordPV Pearl:10partnersincludingSaule

Dr.MarkusLenz

Groupleader,Appliedcircular economy +41612285686 markus.lenz@fhnw.ch

Inthemix

Combiningbiocharandcompostto rehabilitatedegradedsoils

Biochar-Didyouknow?

Biocharisaformofcharcoalobtainedbythermally decomposingbiomassattemperaturesbetween 400and700°Cwithoutoxygen,aprocess knownaspyrolysis.Over2500yearsago,Amazoniansusedasimilarprocessofsmouldering agriculturalwaste,bones,brokenpotteryand otherorganicmattertocreatehighlyfertileTerra preta,whichmeansdarkearthinPortuguese. Today,mostbiocharisproducedfromwoodyand grassybiowastes.

Pyrolysisofbiomassresultsnotonlyintheproductionofsolidbiocharbutalsoinbiofueland syngas.Plantsproducingbiocharmayusethe syngastheygeneratetofuelpyrolysis.

Biocharcanprovidestablecarboninsoilfor hundredstothousandsofyears.Itsporosityhelps soilretainwater,nutrientsandorganicmatter.It canalsoreducenitrousoxide(N2O)emissions duringcomposting,whichhelpscountergreenhousegasemissions.

Ifyouhaveavegetablepatchinyourgardenor flowersonyourbalcony,youknowthebenefitsof usingcomposttomaintainorincreasethequality ofyoursoil.Materialsaddedtosoiltoimprove itschemical,physicaland/orbiologicalproperties arecalledsoilamendments.Onesoilamendment generatingsubstantialinterestisbiochar,aform ofcharcoalobtainedfrombiomass.

IntheAgrocompositprojectconductedas partoftheEuropeanJointProgrammeonAgriculturalSoilManagement(EJPSOIL),scientists fromtheInstituteforEcopreneurshipandAgroscopearecollaboratingwithresearchersand practitionersinNorwayandHungarytocombine biocharwithcompostingofdifferenttypesof biowaste.Theyaretestingthepotentialof compositesoilamendmentstorehabilitate degradedsoils,increasenitrogenuseefficiency alongtheentirevaluechainandreducegreenhousegasemissions.

InSwitzerland,FHNWresearchersarecocompostingbiocharwithanaerobicallydigested greenwasteandtheorganicfractionofmunicipal solidwastefromananaerobicdigestionplant. InNorway,researchersarecombiningaquaculture biowastewithbiochar,whileinHungary,a mixtureofsewagesludgeandbiocharisbeing investigated.

First,theteamisproducingcompositesoil amendmentsfromdifferentbiowastesandwith varyingbiocharconcentrationsinthelab,and testingthesemixturesinpotexperimentson wheatandmaizeplants.Theyaremeasuringthe levelofnutrients,carbon,tracemetalsand polycyclicaromatichydrocarbon(PAH)inthe compositesthemselves,inthedifferenttypesof soilstheyareappliedtoandinthecrops.These resultswillbecomparedtopotsthatcontainno amendments,digestedwasteonly,biocharonly andtraditionalmineralfertilisers.

Next,theteamwillapplyitsfindingsoutdoors inlarge-scalefieldtests,toquantifythepotential ofthecompositesoilamendmentstoimprove degradedsoilsatspecificsites.Theywilldeterminewhichcompositeamendmentshelpenhance soilpropertiestosupportagroecologicalfunctions,includingincreasedcarboncontentand improvedwater-holdingcapacity.

“Fieldtestsarechallenging,withalarge numberofvariablesthatcan’tbefullycontrolled, buttheyareessentialtotranslatinglabresults intoapplication.Weareexcitedtogeneratenew insightsintobiowastevalorisationroutesfor healthieragroecosystemsinEuropethroughthe applicationofbiochar-compostcompositesin real-worldsituations”saysGross.

ThomasGrossusesadrumcompostertogenerateanewcompositesoilamendmentthatincludesbiochar, anaerobicallydigestedgreenwasteandtheorganicfractionofmunicipalsolidwaste.

Findingpromisingcompositesoilamendments isnottheonlyaim.Theprojectcollaborateswith severalfull-scalebiowastetreatmentfacilitiesand farmsinSwitzerlandandEuropetoexplore environmentallyandeconomicallysoundbiowaste valorisation.Toquantifytheenvironmental footprint,Gross’teamisconductingsubstance flowandlifecycleanalysistocalculateenvironmentalimpactsfromresourceuseandemissions alongthebiowastevaluechain.Combinedwith ecotoxicologicalassessmentsconductedbyother consortiumpartners,thiswillprovideasolidbasis todetermineiftherearerisksforsoilhealthand cropsafety,andwhethertheadditionofbiochar tocompostisjustifiedintermsofyield,environmentalimpactsandeconomiccosts.

Agriculturalandenvironmentalagencies requirethistypeofdatatoestablishregulations andprovidesoundguidancetofarmers.The SwissFederalOfficeoftheEnvironmentiscalling

formoreknowledgefromresearchbeforebiochar canberecommendedforuseinSwisssoils, particularlywithregardtotheeffectsonsoil organisms.Concernsregardingbiocharhavebeen formulatedinthefollowingfactsheet:Biocharin Swissagriculture-risksandopportunitiesforsoil andclimate[inGerman:Pflanzenkohleinder SchweizerLandwirtschaft RisikenundChancen fürBodenundKlima].

Attheintersectionofbiowastevalorisation, agricultureandbioenergy,thisprojectcanhelp generateknowledgeaboutthesafetyandefficacy ofcombiningbiocharwithcompost,andinthe longrun,contributetodrivingtheSwissbioeconomy.“Ultimately,wehopetohelpcloseresource cycles,reducethedependencyonnon-renewable fertilisersandprovidenewsolutionstorehabilitatedegradedsoils”saysThomasGross.

“Ultimately,wehopeto helpcloseresourcecycles, reducethedependency onnon-renewablefertilisers, andprovidenewsolutions torehabilitatedegradedsoils.” ThomasGross

Community: Switzerland,Europe

Financing/Support: SNSF31SL30_214524

Partners: Agroscope;BudapestUniversityofTechnology andEconomics;NorwegianInstituteofBioeconomy Research;InstituteforSoilSciencesofHungary

ThomasGross Researchassociate,Sustainable resourcesmanagement +41612285654 thomas.gross@fhnw.ch

Trustedpartner forindustry

Swisscompaniesofallsizesseekus outasatrustedpartnerforapplied research.WithakeyroleintheBasel cluster,ourcompetencesandstateof-the-artfacilitiesareanassetforboth bigpharmaandSMEs.Innosuisse projectfinancingisavailableforfirms whocollaboratewithustobringtheir ideastowardthemarket.

Biologics–anewgeneration ofmedicinesthatrequire newsolutions

Biologicshaveestablishedtheirplaceasanewgeneration ofmedicinesthatprovidemoretargetedtreatmentoptions forcancer,autoimmunediseases,metabolicdiseases andgeneticdisorders.

Today,biologicmodalitiessuchasantibody-drugconjugates, bispecificproteinsandcellandgenetherapieshaveopened upevenmoreavenues,yettheypresentuniquechallenges inbiopharmaceuticalproduction.Meanwhile,someestablished biologicsaremovingfromclinicaltohomesettings,where patientscanadministerthemthemselves.Thiscreatesnovel considerationsforbiologicsstorage,injectionandalternative deliveryroutes.

TwoteamsattheInstituteforPharmaTechnologyandBiotechnologyarecollaboratingwithindustrytofindsolutionsto newchallengesacrosstheentirebiomanufacturingprocess, fromcelllinedevelopmenttoculture,purification,formulation, fill,finishandqualityassuranceoftechnicalandpreclinical trialmaterial.

Cellculture

MammalianhostcelllinessuchasChineseHamster Ovary(CHO)orHumanEmbryonicKidney(HEK) cellsactaslivingfactoriestoproducebiologics. Understandingwhatishappeninginsidethe bioreactorduringdifferentstagesofcellcultureis keytoobtaininghighyields.

Ramanspectroscopy,includinganalysers, probesandsoftware,canenablereal-time analysisofnutrients,metabolites,productquality andcellviability,helpingmanufacturersgain controloftheprocessandmakedecisionsabout whentofeedtheculture.However,itswide-scale implementationiscurrentlylimitedbycalibration modeldevelopment,whichrequireslabour-intensiveandtime-consumingexperimentalsetups aswellascomplexITinfrastructure.

InanInnosuisseprojectcalledRamanReady, researchersfromtheInstituteforPharma TechnologyandBiotechnologyaredeveloping

Endress+Hauser,aleadingproviderofRamansystems, isimplementingcalibrationmodelsdevelopedattheInstitute forPharmaTechnologyandBiotechnology.

ready-to-usecalibrationmodelsforRaman spectroscopyinbioprocesses.

“BycombiningRamantechnologywithmachine learningexpertise,weaimtocreateversatile andaccuratemodelsthatareapplicablefora widerangeofbiologicsandprocesses”saysProf. Dr.ThomasVilliger,GroupLeader,Bioprocess Technology.

Theproject’simplementationpartner,Endress+ Hauser,isaleadingproviderofRamansystems whobelievesintheimportanceofdelivering high-qualitysensorstoitsclients.

“Weareconfidentthattheworkwearedoing withtheFHNWwillhelpmakeRamansystemsmore accessibletoourclientsandbroadentheapplicationofthispowerfultechnology”saysLukasJegge, SeniorSalesEngineeratEndress+Hauser.

DoctoralresearcherSherinPanikulamperformschromatographytopurifybiologics,andanalyseswhetherhostcell proteinsremainafterpurification.

Purificationofantibodies

Afterproduction,biologicmodalitiessuchas antibodiesproducedfromahostcellneedtobe separatedfromtheculturemediuminwhichthey weregrown.Centrifugation,membranefiltration andproteinaffinitychromatographyarethemost commonstepstocaptureandpurifythetarget biologics.However,smallamountsofprotein impurities,knownashostcellproteins(HCPs,may remainafterchromatographyandcancause concernsforproductquality,safetyand/orefficacy.

Inalarge-scalestudyconductedwithNovartis, SherinPanikulamfromVilliger’steamanalysed 23biologicsafteraffinitychromatography.The goalwastofindoutwhattypesofHCPsremained andunderstandwhytheyhadbeencaptured alongwiththebiologics,tobetterguideprocess development.

Ofthe449HCPsidentified,mostwerecapturedalongwithfewerthan3biologics.However,

someHCPsremainedidentifiedinmanybiologics. Usingproteinnetworkanalysis,Panikulamshowed thatprotein-proteininteractionisanadditional mechanismforHCPco-elution,resultinginfailure toremovethembychromatography.

“Ourfindingsmayhelptoguidehostcellline development,forexampleknockdownorknockout oftheprimarybindingpartnerintheCHOcellline. Wealsohopethatnewpurificationstrategiescan bedevelopedtopreventcertainhost-cellproteins frombringingtheirfriendstothepartyandbeing capturedwithtargetbiologics”saysPanikulam.

“Nowadays,weneedabetterknowledgeof residualimpuritiesremaininginbiologics.These resultsarekeytounderstandinghowHCPs behaveduringthepurificationprocessofadrug, andsupportprocessdevelopmentincaseaproblematicHCPisspotted”saysNicolasLebesgue, PrincipalScientistinAnalyticalCharacterization atNovartis.

DoctoralresearcherJuliaMüllerdevelopsnewcontinuouspurificationstrategiesforviralvectorsusedingenetherapy.

Purificationofgenetherapeutics

Ingenetherapy,arepairDNAsequenceis packagedinsideaviralvector,alsocalleda capsid,thatdeliverstheDNAtothenucleusofa cell.Manufacturinggenetherapeuticsiscomplex andtimeconsuming,asthetraditionalproduction processrequiresthreeplasmids,growthofhost HEKcells,introductionofthethreeplasmidsinto HEKcells,productionbytheHEKcellsofviral capsidsthatcontainthetherapeuticDNAsequence,andseparationofcapsidsfromthe materialusedtoproducethem.

Notallviralvectorsproducedcontainthe therapeuticDNA.AfterproductioninHEKcells, about50-80%ofcapsidsareempty.Captureand polishingchromatographystepsareusedto obtain80-90%fullcapsidsandtoensuretherapeuticefficacy.Purificationprocessesforviral vectorsarenotaswellestablishedorstandardisedasthoseforantibodies,especiallyat

largerscale.Thisisacriticalbottleneckto makinggenetherapiesmoreaffordable andavailable.

InaprojectwithYMC,aleadingdeveloper ofchromatographicstationaryphasesand purificationequipment,JuliaMüllerfromVilliger’s labisworkingoncontinuouspurificationstrategiesforadeno associatedviralvectors(AAVs

“InsteadofcapturingAAVsonasinglecolumn andlosingsomeduringloading,weareusingtwin columnstotransfertheflow-throughfromthefirst columntothesecond,givingAAVsasecond chancetobecaptured”saysMüller.Afterwards, thefirstcolumnisemptiedandreintegratedinto theprocess,pickingupthebatonwhenthe secondcolumnisfull,andsoonuntileverything hasbeenpurified.Continuouspurificationnotonly capturesmoreAAVs italsouseslessmaterial andenergythanbatchpurificationandiseasierto characteriseforqualityassurance.

“Continuouschromatographyoffers greatpromiseforachievinghigher yieldsingenetherapymanufacturing,whileincreasingsustainability andreducingcosts.”

ThomasMüller-Späth,CEO,YMC

Similarly,duringpolishingtoseparatefull andemptyAAVs,thepurestfractionoffullAAVs centrecut isextractedfromthefirstcolumn, whilepartiallypuresidecutscontainingboth emptyandfullAAVsarerecycledonasecond column,resultinginincreasedyieldoffullAAVs withoutcompromisingpurity.

“TheresultsgeneratedbytheFHNWdemonstratethatcontinuouschromatographyoffers greatpromiseforachievinghigheryieldsingene therapymanufacturing,whileincreasingsustainabilityandreducingcosts”saysThomasMüllerSpäth,CEOofYMC.

Surfactants,whichhaveahydrophilicheadandhydrophobictail,areusedinbiologicsformulationtopreventaggregation.

Biologicsdrugproductformulation

Biologicscanbecomedestabilisedbyconditions duringtransport,storage,andhandling,whichcan leadtolossofefficacyorunwantedimmune reactions.Withbiologicsadministrationmoving fromthedoctor’sofficetothehome,patientsare becomingpartofthecoldchainandsharing responsibilityforconsistentrefrigerationand properhandlingoftheirbiologics.

Topreventdamagetotheirstructure,biologics areformulatedwithsurfactants,amphiphilic moleculescomposedofahydrophilicheadanda hydrophobictail.Surfactantspreventbiologics aggregationbyblockingtheiradsorptionat air-waterinterfacesencounteredduringmanufacturing,storage,transportanduse.Onlythree surfactantsarecurrentlyusedincommercial biologicsformulation,andtheyfacechallenges whenitcomestodegradation.

Inaprojectconductedincollaborationwith

Novartis,Prof.Dr.OliverGemershausandhisteam helpedassess40newpotentialsurfactants, includingexistingmoleculesandnovelsurfactants synthesisedbyNovartis.Theyfirstexamined biophysicalpropertiesofthecandidates,followed bytheirabilitytopreventagitation-induced aggregationwhenformulatedwithdifferenttypes ofbiologicsincludingadisorderedprotein,a fragmentantigenbindingregion,monoclonal antibodiesandafusionprotein.Mostimportantly, thechemicalandenzymaticdegradationpropensityofthenewsurfactantswasinvestigated.

Theteamidentified2finaliststhatoffered comparableorbetterbiologicsstabilisationand significantlylesssurfactantdegradationcomparedtoexistingformulations.

“ItwascrucialtohavetheexpertiseofFNHWat ourdisposalwhenselectingtheabovealternative surfactants”saysKarolineBechtold Peters, DirectorScience&TechnologyatNovartis.

“Wewillcontinuetoexplorenewsurfactants together.”

CapabilitiesattheInstituteforPharmaTechnologyandBiotechnologyhavebeenbeneficialin twootherprojectswithNovartis:Microdownscale modelstoevaluatethefreeze-thawstabilityof biologicalagents;aswellasPhysicalassessment andmodelstoevaluatethesiliconeoildepletion activityofbiologicalagents.Bothareessentialfor productsinpre-filledsyringes.

“Earlydownscalemodelsandsimulationsenable speedtofirst-in-humanandhelpaccelerate thedevelopmenttimeline”saysBechtold-Peters.

PhDstudentIliasAmaraproducesartificialreferenceparticlesusingtwophotopolymerisation.

Particlecharacterisation

Afterbiologicshavebeenproduced,purifiedand formulated,theyundergoqualityassuranceto ensuretheymeetestablishedstandardsforinjectabledrugformulations,includinglimitsofvisible andsubvisibleparticles.

Particlestypicallyrangefromnanometers tohundredsofmicrometers.Theymaybe extrinsictothenormalmanufacturingprocess,for examplecellulosefibersfromcleaningprocesses. Theycanalsobeintrinsic,havingemanatedfrom normalmanufacturingprocessesorthecontainer closuresystem,ortheymaybeinherent,originatingfromformulationexcipientsortheactive ingredient,forexampleexpectedaggregates orhazes.

Calibrationofinstrumentsusedforsizingand countingsuchparticlesisdonewithperfectly sphericalreferenceparticlesthatofferhigh opticalcontrast.Intrinsicproteinparticles,onthe

otherhand,poseachallengeforinstrumentsdue totheirirregularshapeandtranslucentnature.

Toaddressthis,Germershaus’groupfabricatedirregularlyshapedparticlesrepresentativeof subvisibleandvisibleparticles,inacollaboration projectwithRoche.Createdbytwophoto polymerisation(2PP)printing,theseartificial particlesmayserveasnewreferencematerial mimickingthemorphological,opticalandphysical propertiesofproteinparticles.

Intheirstudy,theycomparedthenew referencematerialtocurrentlyusedpolystyrene spheres,standardparticlesfromtheNational InstituteofStandardsandTechnologyandactual proteinparticlesgeneratedbyexposingmonoclonalantibodiestovariousstresses.

“Wearecurrentlyworkingtowardsbroad evaluationofthesuitabilityoftheprotein-like particlestandardswedevelopedwithstakeholdersinthepharmaceuticalindustry,withthe

ultimategoalofharmonisingsubvisibleandvisible proteinparticlecharacterisationacrosslaboratoriesandorganisations”saysGermershaus.

ScientificassistantYasminGretherconductstestsintheFHNW‘sProcessTechnologyCenter, wherecompaniescandevelopnewfillfinishformatsandprotocols.

Packagingandadministration

Oncebiologicshavebeenformulatedandcharacterised,theyundergofillfinish,whichinvolves transferringthebiologicdrugsubstancetoa sterilevialorsyringe,stoppering,inspectionand labelling.Somebiologicsarelyophilisedbefore stopperingtoincreasetheirstability.TheProcess TechnologyCenterattheFHNWCampusMuttenz featuresacleanroomwherecompaniescandevelopnewfillfinishprotocols,fillreferencesamples ormanufacturebiologicsforpreclinicaltrials.

Increasingly,biologicsarebecomingavailable forpatientstoadministerathomeusingpre-filled syringes,autoinjectorsorpatchpumps.These productsofferpatientsconvenienceandautonomy,andaredesignedtohelpovercomeneedle phobiaandincorrectadministration.

Pre-filledsyringescontaintherightdosage, andthepatientcancontroltheinjectionspeed.

Autoinjectorsaresemi-automatic,withabuttonto

starttheinjection,ahiddenneedleprotectedbya safetycoverandaudibleclicksthatindicatewhen theinjectioniscomplete.Patchpumpsandother wearabledevicesarethenewest,mostadvanced optionsforbiologicsself-administration.The latestdevicesfeatureinnovationstoreconstitute lyophilisedbiologicsandenabledeliveryoflarger volumesbysubcutaneousinfusion.

Germershaus’teamiscollaboratingwith companiesfromthepharma,packagingand devicesectorsfocusingonthedevelopmentof newinjectiondevices.Thesubcutaneousdelivery oflargervolumesiscurrentlyanimportanttopic. Studiesrangefrominvestigationofthecompatibilityofdevices e.g.patchpumps withbiologic drugproducts,tofillingofnovelpackaging formats e.g.cartridges underasepticconditions. Fillingcanbeperformedmanuallyorautomatically inbatchsizesfromsingledigitunitnumbersupto 1000unitsperhour.

Financing/Support: RamanReady:Innosuisse114.286IP-LS DevelopmentofaMobileDosingPumpforthe AdministrationofBiologics:25721.1PFLS-LS Partners: Endress+Hauser,Novartis,Roche, YMCChromaCon,SensileMedicalAG

Prof.Dr.ThomasVilliger Groupleader,Bioprocesstechnology +41612285246

thomas.villiger@fhnw.ch

Prof.Dr.OliverGermershaus HeadofInstituteforPharma TechnologyandBiotechnology Groupleader,Formulations anddevicesforactivechemical andbiologicalsubstances +41612285526

oliver.germershaus@fhnw.ch

Overcomingfrontiersin brainmedicine

Ourbrainisprotectedbyalayeroftightlywovenendothelial cellsthatlinethebrain’sbloodvessels,calledtheblood-brain barrier.Thesecellsblockforeignagentssuchaspathogens fromenteringourbody’scommandcentre.Atthesametime, nutrientsthatthebrainneedsareallowedtopass,viaaprocess calledreceptormediatedtranscytosis(RMT).Receptorson thesurfaceofendothelialcellsrecogniseandbindtonutrients, andcarrythemintothebrain.

Thebarrieralsopreventssometherapeuticsfromreaching diseasetargetsinthebrain.Medicinesthatcansuccessfully enterthebrainincludeanesthetics,antidepressantsand antipsychotics.Agreatneedremainshoweverfortherapiesto treatAlzheimer’s,ALS,Parkinson’s,braincancersandmore. Biologicdrugscouldofferhope,butstrategiesmustbedevised tosneaktheselargemoleculespastthebarrierusingRMT.

TeamsattheInstituteofChemistryandBioanalyticsare workingonengineeringnanomedicinesthatcanenterthebrain, aswellasnewmodelsoftheblood-brainbarrierthatcanbe usedbypharmaceuticalcompaniestotestwhether medicinescancross.

Bighopesfornanomolecules

Nano-engineeredshieldforenzymereplacement therapycouldhelpitreachtargetsinthebrain

Enzymesareproteinsthatspeedupchemical reactionsincells.Theybreakdownfoodand toxinsinourdigestivesystemandliver,andhelp DNAunwindduringcelldivisionandreplication forexample.Beyondtheirroleinourbodies,their propertiesascatalystsmaketheminterestingasa greeneralternativetochemicalcatalystsfor chemicalreactions.

In2016,scientistsattheInstituteforChemistryandBioanalyticsdevelopedaninnovative methodtoengineerenzymesinsidenanoparticles, makingthemmoreresilientforapplicationsin biocatalysis.TheyspunoffthecompanyInofea, focusedonprovidingsolutionsforstable,active andpureenzymesforchemicalreactionsand productionprocesses.

Enzymescanalsoactastherapeutics,in caseswhenthebodyisnotproducingenoughon itsown.Buildingontheirenzymeengineering technology,Prof.Dr.PatrickShahgaldianandhis teamdevelopednano-architecturestoprotect sensitiveenzymetherapeuticsfromdegradation inthebody e.g.intestinaltract.Theteam designedanorganic-inorganichybridthatenables enzymestostayaliveandreachtheirtargetsin thegut.Thiscansignificantlyreducethepill burdenforpatients.Forthetherapeuticapplicationsoftheshieldingtechnology,Shahgaldian

spunoffPerseoPharmain2019.Thefirmis currentlyconductingpreclinicaltestingoffour digestivetherapies,aswellasinvestigatingifa similarapproachcouldbeusedtodelivera cocktailofenzymesthatpreventsmetabolic activityincancercells.

ThenextfrontierforShahgaldianandhisteam isanotherdifficultenvironmentformedicines:the brain.Thistime,they’reworkingonsolutionsfor lysosomalstoragediseases(LSD),alargegroup ofmetabolicdisorderscausedbyenzyme deficienciesinthelysosome.About50-70%of LSDsaffectthecentralnervoussystem.Enzyme replacementtherapiescanhelpaddresssome oftheseconditions,butunfortunatelytheydonot crosstheblood-brainbarrier.

Shahgaldian’steamisseekingtoovercome thisproblembydesigninganouterenzymeshield thatwillnotonlyprotecttheenzymes,butmore importantly,bindtoreceptorsontheblood-brain barriertoallowtransportacrossit.

“Bydecoratingtheenzymeswithstructures thatthebrain’sendothelialcellsrecognise andbindto,itmaybepossibletodeliverenzymes tothebrain.Wehopeourapproachwillcontributetonewtreatmentsforlysosomalstorage diseasesaffectingcentralnervoussystem targets”saysShahgaldian.

ResearchassociateCongyuWuperformsscanningelectron microscopytocharacterisenanomoleculesdesignedtobind totheblood-brainbarrier.

Anotherstrategythattheteammayexplorein thefutureisthedesignofnanoparticlesforintranasaladministration.Nosetobrainisapromising routethatavoidssomechallengesassociated withtheblood-brainbarrierandforwhichnanomoleculesareparticularlysuited.

Financing/Support: SwissNanoscienceInstitute Partners: PerseoPharma

Prof.Dr.PatrickShahgaldian Groupleader,Molecular nanotechnology +41612285487 patrick.shahgaldian@fhnw.ch

Testingbrainmedicinesinthefastlane

New invitro modeloftheblood-brainbarrierhelps pharmaidentifypromisingcandidates

ResearchassociateFlorianaBurgioseedsbrainmicrovascular endothelialcellsinanOrganoPlate 3lane Mimetas tocreate amodeloftheblood-brainbarrier.

Theneedforbraintherapeuticsisgreat,andmany pharmaceuticalcompaniesaredevelopingdrugs. Totestthesenovelmedicines,clinicallyrelevant modelsthatmeasuretheirabilitytocrossthe blood-brainbarrierareneeded.

Invitro modelsarecellsgrowninsideaspecial devicethatmimicshowanorgan,orpartofit, functions.Prof.Dr.LauraSuter-Dick’steamatthe InstituteforChemistryandBioanalyticshasdeep expertiseindevelopinglivermodelstotestthe safetyofnewmedicines,whilereducingand replacingtheneedtouseanimalsforexample.

Backedbythisstrongfoundationinadvanced invitro modelsandnewapproachmethodologies (NAMs,postdoctoralresearcherDr.Floriana BurgiofromSuter-Dick’scellbiologygroup,in collaborationwithscientistsfromUCBPharma Belgium,setouttocreateamodelofthebloodbrainbarrierusinginducedpluripotentstem cells iPSC).Theseimmaturecellscanbedifferen-

tiatedintoanycelltype,makingthemversatile forresearch.

ThemodelimplementedbyDr.Burgiofeatures asinglecelltype:brainmicrovascularendothelial cells(BMEC)derivedfromiPSC.Shegrewthe modelinanOrganoPlate®(Mimetas andconductedteststoconfirmthatitmimicsbarrier tightness.Themodelfeaturesatopchannelwith endothelialcells,amiddlechannelwithextra-cellularmatrix,andanemptybottomchannel.Test moleculesareperfusedintothetopchannel; thosethatbindandpassarecollectedinthe bottomchannel.Thesystemiscompatiblewith automatedfluidhandlingandallowstheevaluationof40chipssimultaneously.

“WhentestedinourBBBmodel,weshowed thatamoleculewhichbindstothetransferrin receptorhasan11-foldincreaseincrossingthe barriercomparedtoacontrolmoleculethatdoes notbind”saysBurgio.“Thisestablishedthatour

modelexhibitsfunctionaltransferrinreceptormediateduptakeandtranscytosis.”

Theprojectwasconductedincollaboration withUCBPharmaBelgium,aleaderinmedicines forneurological,immuneandrarediseases.

“TheFHNW’smodeloftheBBBrepresentsa greatstepforwardtowardstestingtheabilityof potentialdrugcandidatestoenterthebrain.Inthe end,suchamodelcanimprovepreclinicaltesting offuturemedicinesfrombothanefficacybutalso asafetypointofview”saysRainerClass,AssociateDirectorof Invitro ADME,UCBPharma.

“Notonlydidthisprojectenableustodevelop amodelthatUCBPharmaBelgiumcanuseaspart oftheirdrugscreeningprocess;italsoallowedthe FHNWSchoolofLifeSciencestobreaknew groundindesigning invitro modelswithinduced pluripotentstemcells,propelledbythelatest microfluidictechnologies”saysgroupleaderProf. Dr.LauraSuterDick.

“TheFHNW’smodelofthe blood-brainbarrierrepresentsa greatstepforwardtowardstesting theabilityofpotentialdrug candidatestoenterthebrain.”

RainerClass,AssociateDirector ofInvitroADME,UCBPharma.

Partners: UCBPharmaBelgium

Prof.Dr.LauraSuter-Dick Groupleader,Cellbiologyand invitro toxicology

+41612285659

laura.suterdick@fhnw.ch

Burgioassessesiftheinducedpluripotentstemcellsaredenseenough tostartdifferentiationintobrainmicrovascularendothelialcells.

Safetyfirst!

AndreasZoggbringschemicalengineeringcompaniesand studentstogethertomakesharedadvancesinprocesssafety

Managingethoxylation–Didyouknow?

Ethoxylationisachemicalreactionofethylene oxidewithanalcohol,acidortriglycerideoil.The reactionisperformedtoproducesurfactants, whichareusedinlaundrydetergents,surface cleaners,cosmetics,agriculturalproducts,textiles andpaint.

Performingethoxylationasacontinuousreaction ismoresustainableandcost-effectivethan runningitasabatchreaction,buttheexplosive natureofethyleneoxiderequiresmasteryof reactionsafety.

Properlymanagingandscalinguphazardous continuousreactionsincludes: reactioncalorimetry:measuringheatreleased fromthereaction,determiningheatandgas removalrequirementstocontrolthereaction. thermaldecomposition:knowingthe temperatureatwhichasubstancechemically decomposes. explosionpressure:measuringthereaction’s pressuretodetermineitsriskofexplosion. pressurerelief:providingamechanisminthe reactortoreleaseexcesspressure.

Prof.Dr.AndreasZogghasapassionforprocess safety.HejoinedtheFHNWSchoolofLife Sciencesin2018afterservingasSafetyexpertat Novartis,andProcessdevelopmentchemistat F.Hoffmann LaRocheandCibaSCforseveral years.Nowheleadstheprocessdevelopment groupattheFHNW’sProcessTechnologyCenter. Heisfounderandpresidentoftheassociation Miniplant4.0.

“Threedriversofinnovationintoday’sSwiss chemicalindustryaresafety,sustainabilityand quality”saysZogg.“Ifyouaskme,safetyalways comesfirst!”

Manychemicalreactionsperformedto produceingredientsfordetergentsandcosmetics poseadangeroffireandexplosion.Transitioning frombatchorsemi-batchreactionstocontinuous flowchemistrycanprovidesafetyadvantages.

Second,ascompanieslooktoreducetheir energyconsumption,theyseetheopportunityto conductsomereactionsincontinuousmodeto avoidcostlyenergypeaks.Thisiscreatinga demandforcontinuousreactorsystemsdeployed atsmaller,decentralisedproductionsites.

Finally,asthepriceofchemicalsmanufacturedinSwitzerlandishigh,theirqualitymustbea differentiatingfactor.Scalingupflowchemistry helpspromotethefinechemicalssectornationally.

Zoggisaddressingallthreeelementsinan InnosuisseprojectcalledSimulation-basedsafety conceptforthescale-upofsafety-related demandingcontinuousprocesses,performedin collaborationwithMScstudentsfromtheFHNW SchoolofLifeSciencesandindustrypartners.

Zogg’steamiscontributingamodeltoscaleup acontinuousethoxylationreactionanddetermine whenanexplosionislikelytooccur.Theinitial modelisbuiltondatainscientificliteratureabout thermodynamicsandreactionkinetics,combined withsmall-scaledifferentialscanningcalorimetry (DSC)measurementscollectedintheFHNW’s ProcessTechnologyCenterexplosionreactor.

Todeterminewhentheethoxylationreactionis likelytocauseanexplosion,Zogg’steammodelled twoscenariosandperformedthemwithina uniqueexplosionreactor,usingtheresultingvapor liquidequilibriumdatatorefinetheirmodel. Althoughtheyhadmodelledamaximumexplosion pressureof12bar,thereactionwasperformedup to20barbeforeexploding.

Furthermore,Zogg’steamconceptualisedthe basicdesignofthecontinuousethoxylationplant, includingacomprehensiveriskanalysis(HAZOP).

Finally,theyperformedtheflowreactionina safetygloveboxthattheydesignedspecifically forthispurpose.Theboxprovidesanitrogen

“Theprocesssafetymodels developedbyFHNWareenabling safer,moreenergyefficient reactionsthatproducehighquality surfactants.Welookforwardto applyingthemodelstoscaleup productioninourfacilities”

RolandBorner,Schärer&SchläpferAG

MasterstudentsThisZahndandBenediktBrönnimanngaindirectexperienceinmodelling andmanaginghazardousprocessesincollaborationwithindustrypartners.

atmosphere,monitorsoxygenandethyleneoxide levelsandfeaturesanintegratedsafetywasherto destroyethyleneoxidesteamleakage.

Fluitec,adesignerandmanufacturerof reactionsystems,iscontributingasmall-scale continuousreactioncalorimetertotheproject. Thisspecialiseddevice,whichsitsinsidethe safetyglovebox,measurestheheatreleased fromthereaction.Thereal-timedatacollected usingFluitec’sdeviceisusedtoadjusttheFHNW’s processmodel.

“Deployingourflowcalorimeterinanexperimentalsettingandcontributingtonewmodelsfor flowchemistryscale-upprovidesvaluableinsights abouthowthecalorimeterperformsatsmalland productionscale"sayssaysMarliesMoser,Fluitec.

TheFHNW’smodel,strengthenedbydata collectedbyFluitec’scalorimeter,willbeapplied bytheproject’simplementationpartner,Schärer &SchläpferAG,aproducerofsurfactantsfor

thepharmaandchemicalindustry.Thegoalisto enabledirectscale-upfromlabtoproduction volumes.

“Theprocesssafetymodelsdevelopedbythe FHNWareenablingsafer,moreenergyefficient reactionsthatproducehighqualitysurfactants. Welookforwardtoapplyingthemodelstoscale upproductioninourfacilities”saysRolandBorner, Schärer&SchläpferAG.

Inadditiontoindustrialinnovation,theproject provideshands-oneducationalopportunities.Two part-timeMScstudents,ThisZahndandBenedikt Brönnimann,areworkingontheInnosuisseproject whilecompletingtheirMaster'sinChemical Engineering.BScstudentsinchemicalengineeringalsocarryoutaportionofthework.The FHNW’sMiniplantfacility,includingitsunique explosionreactorfortestingthethermalprocess safetyofexplosivereactions,providesstudents withdirectexperienceinhazardousprocess

modellingandmanagement.

“EspeciallyforstudentsattheMaster'slevel,it enablesthemtodeepentheirknowledgein real-lifesettingsbeforetheygraduateandfully transitiontoindustry”saysZogg.“Atthesame time,itallowsustoadvanceknowledgeonhowto safelyscale-upflowchemistryprocessesto promotetheiradoptionbyindustry.”

Partners: Fluitec;Schärer&SchläpferAG

Financing/Support: Innosuisseproject62273.1IP-ENG

Prof.Dr.AndreasZogg

Groupleader,Processengineering andreactiontechnology +41612285825 andreas.zogg@fhnw.ch

Progressfor patients

Healthcareisprogressingfromthe clinictothehome,andfromgeneralised treatmentstopersonalisedmedicine.

Adeeperunderstandingofthehuman body,diseaseandhealth,coupled withtechnologicalbreakthroughsand intelligentuseofdata,areproviding newoptionsforpatientsandmedical professionals.

Navigatingthebrain

Intelligentelectromagneticnavigationsystemforprecise implantationofdeepbrainstimulationelectrodes

Deepbrainstimulation-Didyouknow? Inthelate1980s,aFrenchbreakthroughin neurosurgery,deepbrainstimulation(DBS), openednewavenuesforthetreatmentofmovementdisorders.DBSinvolvestheimplantation ofelectrodesandtinyneurostimulatorsin thebrain.Thesedevicessendsignalstospecific targetsinthemotorregions,tohelpalleviate motorsymptoms.

DBSwasapprovedbytheFDAin1997forthe treatmentofParkison’sDiseaseandessential tremor.Itisnowalsousedtotreatdystonia,some obsessive-compulsivedisorders,epilepsy andchronicpain.Itmaybecombinedwithtaking medicines,orofferanalternativetothem.

Thesuccessofdeepbrainstimulation(DBS) dependsonprecision,bothinpositioningthe electrodesandstimulatingspecificbrainregions. Currently,pre-operativeimagingandstereotactic techniquesarethegoldstandardfortheinsertion ofDBSelectrodesintothebrain,buttheydonot offertrackingduringsurgery.

CélineVergne,whoiscompletingaPhDatthe InstituteforMedicalEngineeringandMedical InformaticswithajointenrolmentattheUniversitiesofBaselandStrasbourg,hasdevelopedan electromagneticnavigationsystemaimingatthe precisetrackingofelectrodesduringtheirimplantation.“Thechipintegratedintothestimulation device,coupledwithourvisualisationsystem,will allowsurgeonstoseetheangleandpositionofthe DBSelectrode”saysVergne.

Shefirstintegratedatinymagnetometerinto theelectrode.Lessthan1mmacross,themagnetic sensorcanbedetectedbygeneratinglowmagnetic fieldsandusingatrackingalgorithmtodetermine itsposition.Prof.Dr.JorisPascal’steamcontributedtothesensor’sdevelopment,whileProf.Dr. SimoneHemm’steamwasresponsibleforthesystemset-upandtestinginthesurgicalenvironment. IncollaborationwiththeUniversityofStrasbourg, Vergneisinvestigatingmachinelearningalgorithms tooptimisethesensor’strackingperformance.

Vergnethensetouttoensurethecompatibility ofherprototypewiththesurgicalenvironment.In theoperatinglabattheFHNWSchoolofLife SciencesinMuttenz,sherecreatedaDBSsurgical set-upusingaheadphantominsideastereotactic headset.Fortheelectromagneticnavigation system,calledManaDBS,sheaddedasystem controlunit,amagneticfieldgeneratoranda sensorinterfaceunitconnectedtotheDBSlead.

Electromagneticperturbationsfromthe magneticfieldcanthrowofftracking.Toaddress this,Vergneappliedanewtrackingprincipleto limitelectromagneticdisturbancesandensure correcttrackingoftheelectrode.

Implantationtrialsonaneggplantsimulating braintissuewereperformedinarecreatedDBS surgicalsetup.Thisgaveaninitialideaofthe sensor’sperformance.Thefinalstepbefore transfertotheclinicalenvironmentisuser-friendly softwaretovisualisetrackingintheoperatingroom.

ThesystemwillthenbetestedattheUniversity HospitalBaselduringasurgicaldressrehearsal. Thisenvironmentcansimulatethecompatibilityof thetechnologywiththeuniqueDBSoperatingtheatre,helpingtranslatetheprototypetotheclinic.

Ifsuccessful,ateamofneurosurgeonsatthe UniversityofBaselwilltestthetechnologyin patients.Ultimately,thesystemmaygothrough

medicaldeviceapprovals,ledbyaproducerof neurosurgicalornavigationinstruments.

“It’sveryexcitingtohavethreefieldscoming togetherinthisproject:electronics,computer scienceandneuroscience”saysVergne.“This multidisciplinaryapproachandcollaborationwith partnersaredrivinginnovationforward.”

“Thiselectromagneticnavigationsystemisa promisingtoolforthelocalisationoftheDBS electrodes.Wearehopefulthatitwillbeintegratedintothesurgicalprocedureandbringadvantagesforbothpatientsandmedicalteams”says Dr.EthanTaub,NeurosurgeonattheUniversity HospitalBaselandexternalexpertoftheproject.

CélineVergnetestsherelectromagneticnavigationsystemforlocalisationofelectrodesin thebrain,usingaheadphantominsideastereotacticheadset.

Patients/TargetGroups: Parkinson’sdisease,essential tremor,dystonia,epilepsy,chronicpain

PartnersandPhDCo-Directors:

UniversityofBasel:Prof.Dr.med.RaphaelGuzman, Chairman,DepartmentofNeurosurgery

UniversitédeStrasbourg:Prof.Dr.MorganMadec, Simulationandelectronicssystems

Financing/Support: SNSFprojectgrant204448

CélineVergne PhDstudent

Neuroengineeringandsensor systemsfordiagnosisandtherapy +41612285945

celine.vergne@fhnw.ch

Prof.Dr.JorisPascal Groupleader,Sensorsystemsfor diagnosisandtherapy +41612285647

joris.pascal@fhnw.ch

Prof.Dr.SimoneHemm-Ode Groupleader,Neuroengineering +41612285689

simone.hemm@fhnw.ch

Steppingup3Dprintingof orthopedicinsoles

DanielSeiler’slabisrevolutionizinghowpersonalised orthopedicinsolesaremade

Orthopaedicinsoleshelpredistributepressure andrelievesensitiveareasofthefeet,makingit morecomfortableforpeoplewithfootmisalignmentstowalkandperformdailyactivities.

Orthopaedicinsolesarealsoacrucialtoolfor patientswhosefootnerveshavelostsensitivity, whichcanunknowinglyleadtopressuresoresor evenamputation.Innon-medicalapplications, insolescanhelpincreasecomfortandstabilityfor adults,offersupporttopeoplewhospendalotof timeworkingontheirfeet,andboostperformance inrunningandothersports.

Eventothisday,personalisedinsolesare primarilyproducedusingcomputernumerical control(CNC)machinesandarefine tuned manually.Thistraditionalmethodofmillinginsoles isnotonlyenergy-intensivebutalsogeneratesa substantialamountofnoise,dustandchipwaste.

Theshifttoward3Dprintingofpersonalised insolescanreducewasteby95%.However,the keychallengeistheprinter’sabilitytomanage severaltypesofmaterialswithdifferenthardness levelsandproperties.

InanInnosuisseprojectperformedincollaborationwiththecompanyOrthopodoMalgaroli, DanielSeiler’slabattheInstituteforMedical EngineeringandMedicalInformaticshasdevelopedanautomateddigitalproductionprocess

processfor3Dprintingofpersonalisedorthopaedicinsoles.

“OrthopodoMalgaroliapproacheduswitha desiretomaketheirproductionprocessmoredigital,efficientandsustainable”saysSeiler.“This involvesnotonlyashifttoward3Dprinting processes,butalsonewmethodsinscanning patients’feetandarrivingattheoptimalinsole design.Weenvisionanend-to-endsolutionfrom footscanningtoinsoleoutputthatcanrevolutionisehowpersonalisedinsolesaremade.”

YvesLetzandRomanSantschifromSeiler’s teambeganbydesigningafuseddeposition modeling(FDM)3Dprintercapableofmanaging atleastfourdifferenttypesofsoftmaterialsthat canhelprelievepressure.Theyengineerednew printheadstoaccommodatematerialswith degreesofflexibilityrangingfrom60to90shore A.Theprintercanautomaticallyswitchmaterials andprintheadsbasedontheinsoledesignsit receives.Theseinnovationsenablethe3Dprinter toproduceinsolesthatmeetdiversecomfort andsupportrequirements.

Butlet’stakeastepback:howarepersonalisedinsoledesignscreatedinthefirstplace?A 3Dscanofthefootcombinedwithdynamicfoot pressuremeasurementsareusedwithclinical datasuchasvarus/valguslegsasinputforthe

insoledesign.Basedonthreedecadesofreal dataandexperiencefromOrthopodoMalgaroli, Seiler’steamisdevelopingartificialintelligence modelsandalgorithmsthatcanautomatically designcustomisedinsolesforpatients.

“Oursharedvisionisforpatientstocomeintoa clinicorastore,scantheirfeetandhavethe computercreatea3Dinsolemodel.Theinsolewill thenbeproducedbythe3Dprinter.Withinone hour,patientscanwalkoutwearingtheirnew custom-madeinsoles”saysSeiler.

Thinkingahead,thepartnershaveconceptualisedauser-friendlyinterfaceforthefootmeasurementandprintingplatformforpoint-of-care andpoint-of-salesettings.Astackabledesignwill accommodatemultipleprintersvertically,for clinicsthatproducemanyinsoleseachday.Finally, Seiler’steamisrefiningasecurecloudsolutionfor patientorcustomerdatastorageandprocessing.

“The3DprinterdevelopedbytheFHNWnow givesustheopportunitytoproduceorthopedic insolesquicklyandsustainably”saysMario Malgaroli,ownerofOrthopodoMalgaroli.“Inthe future,itcouldbeusednotonlyinouroffices,but alsoindoctors’offices,bypodiatristsand physiotherapists,andinshoeandsportsstores.” Seilerbelievesitcouldalsobeusedtotriage normalsupportrequirementsfrommedical

ResearchassociatesYvesLetzandRomanSantschidesignedafuseddepositionmodelling3Dprinter capableofmanaginguptofourdifferentsoftmaterialsrequiredforinsoleprinting.

3Dprintingofpersonalizedinsoles canreducewastebyupto95%.

conditionsthatrequiretheexpertadviceof podiatrists,actingasadiagnosticdevice.

Thetransitiontoautomateddesignand3D printingofinsolesisaparadigmshiftfororthopedicfirms.“TheFHNWhashelpedOthopododerisk thetransitiontoManufacturing4.0bymaking advancedknowledgeaccessibleandworkablein practical,real-worldsituations”saysSeiler.

Inthenextstepoftheproject,atrialis plannedtovalidatetheeffectivenessandaccuracyoftheautomatedinsolemanufacturingprocess. Thiswillinvolvetestingthe3D-printedorthopaedicinsolesinreal-worldconditionstoensurethey meetpatientorcustomercomfortrequirements.

Seiler’sgroupisalsostartinganewproject financedbytheForschungsfondsAargautorefine thesoftmaterialfilamentsusedtoproducethe insolesandgivethemantimicrobialproperties.This workisbeingconductedincollaborationwiththe InstituteforChemistryandBioanalyticsand

theInstituteofPolymerEngineering.

Lastly,theteamisaimingtoreducethe amountofglueneededbetweenlayersofdifferentmaterialsbyintegratingtheglueintothe printingprocess.Theyarealsodesigningnew softmaterialsthatwillberecyclable,twofurther stepstowardincreasedsustainabilityof customisedinsoles.

Patients/TargetGroups: Footmisalignmentpatients, Adultswithreducedbalance,Standingoccupations,Sports Partners: OrthopodoMalgaroli

Financing/Support: InnosuisseProject107.955IP-LS

ForschungsfondsAargauProject20220930_17

ForschungsfondsAargauProject20240331_03

DanielSeiler Laboratoryleader, Medicaladditivemanufacturing +41612285848

daniel.seiler@fhnw.ch

Improvingwoundhealing afterC-sections

RetoWildhaber’steamhasdevelopedavisualisationtechnology tobetterilluminatecorrectivesurgeryaftercaesariansections

InSwitzerland,32%ofbabiesaredeliveredby caesareansection.Whilehospitalsareworkingto reducethenumberofproceduresthatarenot medicallynecessary,Switzerland’srateremains oneofthehighestinEurope.

Caesareansectionsposeseveralriskstothe mother,oneofwhichispoorhealingoftheuterine scar.Unknowntissuefactorscanleadtohampered woundhealingandgapsintheanterioruterinewall. Thesegaps,alsocalledniches,weakentheuterus inasubsequentpregnancy.Itcantake1-2years forwomentoobservepainandothercomplications fromimproperwoundhealing,whichmightrequire follow-upcorrectivesurgery.Chronicpainand multiplesurgicalinterventionscanpreventwomen fromperformingchildcaredutiesandreturningto theworkforce,andcanconsiderablyreducetheir qualityoflife.Ifthenichebreaksduringasubsequentpregnancy,therearesignificantrisksfor bothmotherandbaby.

SurgeonsattheUniversityHospitalZürich approachedProf.Dr.RetoWildhaberwiththeidea ofintegratingalightsourceintoauterinemanipulator,atoolusedduringgynaecologicalsurgery. Currentlaparoscopictoolsandcamerasystemsfor imagingtheuterusduringcorrectivesurgeryemit lightonlyoutsidetheuterus,andprovideanunclear viewofdifferentlayersoftissueinsidetheuterus.

Wildhaber,whospecialisesinsignalanalysis anddigitalbiomarkers,cameupwiththeideato useapulsinglightthatisinsertedintotheuterus throughthevaginaandcervix.Hesupportedthe developmentofthefirstprototypewhileworking attheBernerFachhochschule(BFH).In2021he joinedtheInstituteforMedicalEngineeringand MedicalInformaticsandcontinuedtoworkonthe projectincollaborationwithBFH,withwhomajoint patenthasnowbeenfiled.

First,Wildhaber’steamtackledthephysical challengesofrefiningtheprototype.Theyselected thematerialandprocesstoproducetheinstrument tipwherethepulsingredLEDlightsourceis housed:3Dprintedbiocompatiblepolymethyl methacrylate.Thetipsweresubjectedtomechanicalforcetestingtoensuretheycanbendduring surgerywithoutsnapping.

Tofacilitatesterilisation,theinstrumentcanbe disassembledintocomponentsandlaidflatinan autoclave.Theconicaldesignofonecomponent actsasa‘plug’forthecervix,stabilizingtheinstrumentandpreventinggasinjectedintotheabdomenduringsurgeryfromescapingtheuterus.

Tokeepthetipoftheinstrumentcooland preventdamagetouterinecelltissue,fibreoptic cablesareusedtotransmitlightfromthepulsing redLEDsintotheuterus.

Theteamthenputmathematicsintoaction, developingadigitalenhancementequationthat exploitsthedifferencebetweenthepulsinginterior lightemittedbytheprototype,andtheexterior lightemittedbylaparoscopictools,tocreatean imageoverlayonthesurgicalmonitoringscreen.

The2Daugmentedrealitywillhelpguide surgeonsbydisplayingtheboundaryofdifferent tissuesintheuterusandthelocationofthe surgicaltool.Itwillenablethemtoseetheniche andpreciselyremovescartissue.

Overall,theinstrumentprovidesanintrauterine lightsourcethatallowsdirectlocalisationofthe nichewhilestabilizingtheuterus,andiscompatiblewiththeDaVincirobotthatassiststhecorrectivesurgery.Thesmallcomputerrequiredto performthedigitalenhancementequationsand thescreenthatdisplaysthe2Dvisualisationcanbe easilyintegratedintoexistinglaparoscopicset-ups.

Thevisualisationtechnologyunderwenta proof-of-conceptpilotstudyinWildhaber’slabin thesummerof2024,whichwillbefollowedby clinicalstudiesattheDepartmentofGynecology attheUniversityHospitalZürichafterapprovalby Swissmedicandthelocalethicsauthorities.

“Webelievethatwomenwithlowerabdominal symptomsandwomenwithanichethatwishto conceiveasecondchildwillprofitfromthenew

ApulsingredLEDlightinthetipoftheinstrumentisusedin digitalenhancementequationstogeneratea2Daugmented realityduringsurgery.

device”saysProf.Dr.med.CorneliaBetschart Meier.“Wearelookingforwardtoapplyingthe so-calledscarlightdeviceinafirstclinicaltrial.It willenhancethesurgicaltechniqueandweexpect itwillyieldagoodoutcomeformothersand children.”

“Thisdevicehasthepotentialtosimplifya medicallynecessaryprocedure,andmakeitsafer andmorereliable,thankstotoday’stechnology” saysWildhaber.

Ifclinicaltestsaresuccessful,aspin-off companyatUSZcouldbeformed,orthetechnologycouldbelicencedtoasurgicalorimaging instrumentsfirminordertobringittothemarket.

Patients/TargetGroups: Gynaecologicalhealth Partners: UniversityHospitalZürich, FachhochschuleBern

Financing/Support: Innosuisse(101.964IP-LS)

Prof.Dr.med.RetoWildhaber

Groupleader,Signalanalysisand digitalbiomarkers +41612286125 reto.wildhaber@fhnw.ch

Intelligentdrugformulation

TwoteamsattheInstituteforPharmaTechnology andBiotechnologyareadvancingresearchonintelligent formulationoforaldrugs

Predictingsolubilityandformulation compositiontoreduceanimaltesting About80%ofexistingandneworaldrugsarepoorlysolubleinthegastrointestinaltract.Assessing theperformanceoforalformulationshaslargely reliedonanimaltesting,whichisincreasingdespite theEU’scommitmenttoreducinganimalsinresearch.

Tooffernewsolutionsandreduceanimaltesting,researchersattheInstituteforPharma TechnologyandBiotechnologyareparticipatingin theEUprojectInPharma.Theprojectaimsto developanend-to-endmodellingapproachtothe formulationofdrugsfororaladministration.

Prof.Dr.MartinKuentz,TeamLeaderinOral FormulationofChemicalDrugs,isleadingthe project’sworkpackage1,Computationaltoolsto developoptimaloraldrugformulations.Thegoal oftheworkpackageistofindsuitableexcipients andformulations,forexampleusingquantum chemicalmethodsandmolecularsimulation.

“Artificialintelligenceandmechanistic modellingareincreasinglyshapingthedevelopmentofdrugproducts”saysKuentz.

InPharmaactivelycontributestotraining13 early-stageresearchers,whoarecompletingtheir EuropeanIndustrialDoctoratesaspartofthe project.Kuentzissupervisingtheworkperformed bytwooftheseearly-stageresearchers.

OneofthemisShaidaPanbachi,whois collaboratingwiththefirmZentivaontestingthe industrialfeasibilityofnoveldeepeutecticsolvent formulations.Forthefirstpartoftheproject, Panbachiusedcomputationaltoolssuchas moleculardynamicssimulationstopredict physicalandchemicalpropertiesofdeepeutectic mixtures,whichshecompletedattheFHNW SchoolofLifeSciencesinMuttenz.

ThenPanbachitravelledtoPraguetoworkon capsulecompatibilityandprototypedevelopment withZentiva,aleadingmanufacturerofgeneric medicines.UnderthesupervisionofDr.Josef Beranek,Panbachiisstudyingthe invitro release propertiesofinnovativedeepeutecticformulations,whichbridgesovertoWorkpackage2led bytheUniversityofAthens.

ShaidaPanbachihasalreadypublishedafirst scientificpaper,whichcontributestotheoverarchingprojectobjective,topromoteformulation innovationusingcomputationaltoolsand invitro teststoreducepreclinicalanimalstudies.

MartinKuentzandhisteamanalysenew liquidformulationschemically.

Financing/Support: EUHorizon2020InPharma955756 PartnersandBeneficiaries: 18organisations,including Zentiva

Prof.Dr.MartinKuentz

Groupleader,Oralformulationof chemicaldrugs +41612285642

martin.kuentz@fhnw.ch

Aquarterofpeoplewhoare65andoldertakefiveormoremedicinesperday.Inthefuture,personalisedformulationsmade usingmicropelletswillhelpeasethepillburdenandmaketreatmentmoreeffective.

Precisionpharmaceuticals

Livinglongerisabenefitofmodernsociety,yetour lifestyleandageincreaseourdiseaseburden.A quarterofpeoplewhoare65andoldertakefiveor moremedicineseveryday,cocktailsthatsometimes haveunexpectedadverseeffectsorlittleefficacy.

Understandinghowwemetabolisedrugs individually drug geneinteraction,andhowthe drugsinteractwitheachother(drug-drug interaction,becomesincreasinglycomplexthe moremedicineswetake.

Across-disciplinaryteamfromthreeinstitutes iscollaboratingtodevelopprecisionpharmaceuticalsthatpredicttherightdosesoftherightdrugs attherighttimes.

Real-worlddrugcombinationsfromproton-pumpinhibitors,bloodthinners,anti-hypertensives,statins,painkillersandmorearetested inorgan-on-chiphuman invitro modelstostudy theirinteractionswhenabsorbedandmetabolised.

Thosemodelscomprisepatient-derivedcells withdifferentmetaboliserprofilestoreflectthe heterogeneityofourpopulation.

Feedingthisdatainto insilico modelsallows predictionofdosageadjustmentstoachievethe besttreatmentswiththefewestsideeffects.

Inthenextphaseoftheproject,theteamwill joinforceswithdrugmanufacturerstoworkon thenextgenerationofmedicinesthatcanbe individuallydosed.Insteadoffixed-dosetablets, drugswillbeformulatedinso-calledmicropellets, whichareeasytoswallowandperfectfor personaliseddosages.

“Imagine!Inthefuture,patientscangototheir pharmacy,andbasedontheirpharmaco-genetic profileandprescriptions,receiveprecision pharmaceuticalsthathavebeencustom-madefor them”envisionsProf.Dr.JohannesMosbacher, whoisleadingtheproject.Asitoncewasinthe past,pharmacistswouldbethosewhoprepare

themedicinesforpatients,thistimewithhelpof 3Dprintersormicropelletsortingmachines.

Patients/TargetGroups: Olderadults,peopletaking multiplemedicines

Partners: DOPPLSA,GlattGmbH

Financing/Support: StiftungFHNW,Innosuisse44386.1

Prof.Dr.JohannesMosbacher Lecturer,InstituteforPharma TechnologyandBiotechnology +41612286149 johannes.mosbacher@fhnw.ch

Technologyin focus

Artificialintelligence,datascience andquantumcomputingaredeveloping atanexponentialpace.Thisrapid evolutionisgeneratingopportunitiesto harness,aswellasresponsibilitiesto shoulder.Attheforefrontofthesechanges, theFHNWSchoolofLifeSciences providesscientificvisionandethical leadershiptodevelopthedigital technologiesofthefutureandapplythem toresearchquestionsinlifesciences.

Qubitsandbits withClémentJaverzac

In2022,theFHNWSchoolofLifeSciencesmadetheboldmove toestablisharesearchgroupfocusedonappliedquantumcomputing, becomingthefirstUniversityofAppliedSciencesinSwitzerlandto enterthequantumspace.LedbyClémentJaverzac,thegroupisona missiontoapplyquantumcomputingtolifesciences.

Itstartswitheducation

Prof.Dr.Javerzac,tellmewhat’shappening attheFHNWSchoolofLifeSciencesinquantum computing?

We’restartingwitheducation:makingstudents andfacultyquantumaware.Weheldafirstcourse intheMaster'sinMedicalInformaticsin2023, whichgavestudentsthecouragetotacklewhat canseemlikeacomplextechnology.In2024,a quantumcomputingmodulewasincludedinboth BScandMScprogrammes,andweheldasummer schoolattheFHNWonthistopic.

Youdon’tneedtobeamathematicianora physicisttotryquantumcomputing.Thereare user-friendlytoolsandpackagesliketheIBM QuantumComposerthatcanhelpyougetstarted. Whatyoudoneedisanunderstandingofwhich typesofproblemsquantumcomputingis goodatsolving.

Bringyourproblems

Howdoyouidentifytherightresearchquestions toapplyquantumto?

Workingalongsidelifescienceresearchersprovidesanexcellentopportunityforinterdisciplinary exchange.Iaskpeopletobringmetheirproblems! ButIdon’tguaranteethatquantumcansolve themall.

Oneapplicationweareworkingonissimulatingnuclearmagneticresonance(NMR)spectra thataretoocomplexforclassicalsupercomputers. Quantumalgorithmscanbeusedtodecodethe compositionofmatterfornewmaterials,for exampletoidentifythebeststructurefora materialthatcancaptureCO2

Quantumsensingismorematureandpromisingformedicalapplications,forexample,diagnosingfunctionallyrelevantcoronaryarterydisease fCAD).Theheart’stinymagneticfieldcanbe measuredwithquantumsensors.Togetherwith JorisPascalfromtheInstituteforMedicalEngineeringandMedicalInformatics,wearedevelopingamagneto cardiograph(MCG)asapoint of caredevicepoweredbyquantumsensors,in collaborationwithCSEMandtheUniversity HospitalBasel.

Thequantum-AIhandshake

Whattypesofproblemsshouldquantum computingstayoutof?

IncontrasttoAI,quantumcomputingisnot goodatsolvingproblemsthatinvolvebigdata, becauseitisslowtoloadit.Quantumisidealfor solvingcombinatorialproblemswherethereare fewvariablesintheinput,andmanypossibilitiesin theoutput.Thinksupplychainandlogistics,

schedulingshiftworkorDNAsequencing. Withhybridalgorithms,youcangetthebestof bothworlds:youcanaskAItosolveapartof theproblem

veryfast

,andquantumtheother

veryhard

Quantumcommunities

WhichquantumcomputersistheFHNWSchoolof LifeSciencescurrentlyaccessing?

Webookcomputationtimeonthebestinfrastructuresintheworld,includingIBM’squantum computersintheUnitedStates.Thisprivileged accessismadepossiblethroughourpartnership withQuantumBasel.

We’realsoexcitedaboutbuildingEuropean capacityinquantumcomputing.IonQisestablishingaEuropeanquantumdatacentreincollaborationwithQuantumBasel,consistingoftwo systemswith35and64algorithmicqubits respectively.ThiswillpositiontheBaselregionas oneofthemostpowerfulquantumcomputing centresintheworld.

Javerzac‘steamdevelopsquantumsensorsfor newmedicaldevices.

Quantumforeveryone?

Classicalcomputersusedtotakeupentire roomsandbeusedbyspecialists.Nowtheyfit inourpocket.Doyouseeasimilartrajectory forquantumcomputers?

Idon’tthinkquantumcomputerswillreplace currentcomputers,becausedifferenttypesof processingunitshavedifferentfunctions.

Centralprocessingunits(CPUs makeupthe coreoftoday’slaptopsandmobiledevices.

Graphicprocessingunits(GPUs firstappeared forgraphicdesignandvideogameapplications, andarenowusedtotraindeeplearningmodels.

Tensorprocessingunits(TPUs anddata processingunits(DPUs arethenextgeneration ofprocessorsdesignedspecificallyforbigdata applicationsandcentres.

Quantumprocessingunits(QPUs arebestfor solvinghard,combinatorialproblemswithout replacingclassicalcomputing.

Beforequantumcomputerscanmakeittoprime time,weneedtoincreasetheirsize:notonlythe numberandqualityofqubits,butthenumberof operationstheycando,whichiscalledcircuit depth.TheNationalCenterofCompetencein Research:SpinQubitsinSilicon(NCCR-SPIN)is workingonalternativewaferscalequantumcircuitsthatcanbefabricatedbythesemiconductor

Atomicvaporcellscanbeusedtomeasuretinymagnetic fieldssuchastheoneemittedbythehumanheart.

industry.Scalingupfromqubitsinthedouble digitstothemillionswillbringusintoaneweraof quantumcomputing.

Quantumutility

Whatdoesthefutureofquantumcomputing looklike?

We’removingawayfromquantumsupremacy towardquantumutility–understandingwhere quantumcanmakeapracticaldifference.Atour HackLifeevents,companiesbringustheir problemsandwelookatavarietyofapproaches, includingAIandquantum,toseehowwecan solvethem.

Asthenextgenerationofappliedquantum expertsgraduatefromtheFHNWandotherorganisations,theywillmovetoindustryandbecome ambassadorsofthetechnology.I’mexcitedto seewherewestandinfiveyears,withthisnew cohortapplyingthetechnologytodrugdiscovery, materialsscienceandmedicaldevices.

Partners: uptownBasel,QuantumBasel,CSEM,University HospitalBasel,CreativeDestructionLab(CDL),NCCR Spin,SwissQuantumInitiative Financing: SNSF51NF40-180604,Innosuisse, NCCR-Spin,SCNAT.

Prof.Dr.ClémentJaverzac Groupleader,Appliedquantum computing +41612285189 clement.javerzac@fhnw.ch

Spliceitup!

AbdullahKahramanisharnessinglongreadsequencing toidentifynewbiomarkersanddrugtargets

Sequentialimprovements

Prof.Dr.Kahraman,yourteamattheFHNW SchoolofLifeSciencesareanalysingpatternsin genesequencestounderstandandpredictdisease. Tellushowgenesequencinghasevolved. ThefirstgenerationofDNAsequencingbeganin 1977whenFredSangerpublishedhismethodof sequencingfragmentedDNAmolecules.Later,in 1987,itbecamepossibletoautomateSanger’s sequencingmethod,speedinguptheprocesstoa scalewherethesequencingoftheentirehuman genomecouldbeinitiated.Beforethefirstdraftof thehumangenomewasannouncedin2000,a secondgenerationofDNAsequencerswas developedthatcouldsequencemillionsoftiny DNAfragmentsinamassivelyparallelfashion. Now,thethird-generationofDNAsequencing machinescansequencesinglelongDNAfragmentsthat,incombinationwithsingle-celland locationinformation,cangiveusanunprecedentedviewofhowDNAandRNAmoleculesunderline humanbiologyanddiseases.

Alternativesplicesrevealbiomarkersofdisease

Whattypesofinformationcanbefoundusing long-readsequencing?

WhenRNAistranscribedfromDNA,non-coding regionsintheRNAsequencearecleavedoff

splicedout.Theremainingcodingregionsare combinedintodifferentmessengerRNAs.This cellularprocesscalledalternativesplicingisthe reasonwhythesmallnumberofgenesinourDNA cangenerateallthedifferentproteinsthatcells inourbodyneed.

Incancercells,alternativesplicingisoften broken.Asaresult,proteinsareproducedthat promotethesurvivalandgrowthoftumorcells. Withsecond-generationsequencing,accurately identifyingthecompletesequenceoflong transcriptshasalwaysbeenchallenging.However, long-readsequencingnowenablesthedeterminationoftheentiresequenceofindividual transcripts,providinguswithanunprecedented opportunitytoexplorethefulldiversityofRNA moleculesinnormalandcancercells.

IncollaborationwiththeFunctionalGenomics CenterinZurich,myteamusesthenewestsequencingtechnologiestostudytumourdevelopmentandtherapyresistanceincancerpatients. Wedevelopsoftware,machinelearninganddatabases,andintegratethenoveldatasetswithmutational,structuralandproteinexpressiondata.Our goalistoidentifypatternsthatcanpredictdisease progressionanddrugresponse,aimingtodetect cancersearlyenoughthatpatientscanbetreated withouttheirtumoursspreadingintometastases.

Formandfunction

WhataresomechallengesinanalysingRNA sequences?

Figuringoutifatranscriptisoformisadriverof cancerisnoteasy.Althoughlong-readsequencing allowsustoexaminethediversityofallcell transcripts,italsotendstorevealmanynoveltranscriptsforwhichnobiologicalfunctionisknown. Ourfirststudiessuggestthatmostofthese transcriptsaretechnicalartifactsortheresultof unfinishedsplicing.Understandingwhichtranscriptsarebiologicallyrelevantandwhichareonly artifactsisanimportantscientificquestionthat weaddressinmyresearchgroupusingour broadexpertiseinmachinelearningandomics dataanalysis.

Targetingtranscripts

Whattypesofdrugsortherapiescanbedevelopedtotargetdisruptedalternativesplicing?

Therearecurrentlytwotypesoftherapiesfor disruptedsplicing.Oneclassofdrugstargetsthe protein-RNAcomplexcalledsplicesome,whilethe otherbindstopathogenicRNAmoleculesto modifytheirsplicing.Splicesomeinhibitorsare approvedtherapiesforcancerpatientswhohave mutatedsplicesomegenes.Splicingmodifiers,in contrast,areantisenseRNAandsmallmolecule

AbdullahKahramanusesmachinelearningandAI,aimingtodetectcancerbeforetumoursspreadintometastases.

drugsthattargetsplicingeventsinrarediseases, forexample,thedrugRisdiplambyRoche.It’sa smallmoleculethatcanactivatethegeneSMA2 byinducingtheinclusionofanexoninitsRNA, therebyrestoringmusclemotorfunctioninSpinal MuscularAtrophypatients.

Thenextfrontier:Wholeproteinsequencing Whichtechnologieswillshapethefutureofour geneticunderstandingofcancer?

Wecurrentlylackathoroughunderstandingof proteinsandproteincomplexesincancer.The problemwithcurrentproteomicsmethodsisthat theycanonlydetectsingleshortpeptidesfrom longproteinsequences.Ibelieve,therefore,that thenextfrontierwillbewholeproteinsequencing. Apromisingtechnologyinthisfieldisnanopore sequencing.Uncoveringentireproteinsequences willbeagamechangerfortargetdiscovery,not onlyasatooltovalidatealternativesplicing

identificationsbutalsotoassessproteinexpressionandregulatorymodificationsofproteins.

Atthesametime,machinelearningand artificialintelligencewillbecomefundamental technologiesforfuturecancertreatmentin hospitals.Cliniciansarealreadyusinglarge languagemodelstowritestructureddiagnostics reportsorautomaticallydetecttumorcellsin biopsyimages.Artificialintelligenceagentsin hospitalsareenablingthecollectionandintegrationofheterogeneousdatafrompatientsandwill helpcliniciansidentifythebesttherapypathfor theirpatients.Myteamisinvolvedindeveloping bothmachinelearningandAIagentsthrough collaborationsandcontributionstoflagshipgrant proposals.Wehopeourworkwillimprovethe treatmentjourneyofcancerpatientsinhospitals andcontributetofightingthisdevastatingdisease.

Partners: UniversityofZürichandUniversityHospital Zürich,FunctionalGenomicsCenterZürich,University HospitalBasel

Financing: KrebsligaZürich,EMDOGrant,SNFPractice toScience

Prof.Dr.AbdullahKahraman Groupleader,Datasciencein lifesciences

+41612286223 abdullah.kahraman@fhnw.ch

Artificialintelligenceinthe ageofadisciplinarity

EnkelejdaMihoputsdifferentfieldstoworktodevelopnew medicines,diagnostics,andabetterunderstandingofthe health-diseasecontinuum

Developingnewmedicinesforunmet medicalneeds

Prof.Dr.Miho,therearemanywaystoapplyAIto researchinlifesciences.Whatisyourteamat theFHNWSchoolofLifeSciencesfocusingon? Oneofourappliedprojectsfortherapeuticsisthe designofbroadlyneutralizingantibodiesagainst theDenguevirus.Currently,thereisnomedicine totreatthevirus–existingtherapiesfocuson alleviatingsymptoms,whilecurrentvaccinesonly protectagainstsomeserotypes.

Todesignanantibody-basedtreatment,we investigatedtheB-cellimmuneresponseto Denguevirusantigensinmiceandhumans. Specifically,welookedatB-cellsinmurinebone marrow,whichiswherelong-termimmune memoryisheadquartered.Usinghigh-throughput single-cellsequencing,weobtained47.8million rawreadsofB-cellsandtheantibodysequences theyproducedafterexposuretoDengueantigens ofvariouscomplexity.

Thenwehadtomakesenseofthislarge-scale data.Weappliedmachinelearningtodetect patternsintheantibodyrepertoiresandsequencesagainstDengue.Butdothesefindingsapplyto humans?Todeterminethis,welookedatmemory B cells(MBC)fromhumanpatientsaffectedby acuteDengueVirus2.

Weconcludedthat,inbothmiceandhumans, exposuretoDenguegenerateslongCDR3sand Y-richmotifsintheantibodyrepertoire.Our hypothesisisthatthesefeaturescouldberesponsibleforquicklyactivatingmemoryB-cellsand generatingbroadlyneutralizingantibodiesthat bindtotheEproteinonthesurfaceofDengue viruses.

Notonlydidweidentifypromisingantibody sequencesforneutralisationofinfectionsbutwe alsogainednewknowledgeabouttheantigens. DenguewholeE-2complexantigengeneratesthe mostdiverseantibodyresponseandcould thereforebesuitableforthedevelopmentofnew vaccinesagainstthevirus.

Thenextstepofthisprojectwillinvolve humanizingantibodysequencesweisolatedin micesothattheycanbeusedaspotential therapeuticsforDengueinfectionandtoprevent severedisease.

Softwareasadiagnosticdevice

WhataboutDr.AI?Doyouseeabigrolefor AI-assisteddiagnosis?

IseeanincreasingpotentialinusingAItosupport precisediagnosisindiseasesthatcanbedifficult toidentifybecauseoftheiroverlappingand unspecificsymptoms,forexampleautoimmune

andrarediseases.Thisinvolvesunravellingwhich dataismostusefulfordiagnosingwhichdiseases, andfindingwaysofcombiningandstandardizing thatdata.Myteamisintegratingclinicaldatafrom electronichealthrecords,laboratoryvaluesand multi-omicsdata.Wehavedevelopednew integrationmethodsthatcandothis.

Thesecondelementinvolvesbenchmarking machinelearningmodelstodeterminehowwella givenmodelcanidentifydiseaseandwhichmodel isthemostaccurate.Wehaveenhancedour findingsfromrealpatientswithvirtualpatients–likeadigitaltwinofapatient.Wehaveworked withEuropeanhospitalsandmedicalexpertsfrom GermanyandFrance,andwehopetoapplythe findingstoimplementdigitalclinicaltrialsto improvenotonlydiagnosesbutalsotherapy regimenoutcomes.

Tobringsoftwareasadiagnosticdeviceto hospitalsandthemarket,wemaintaincloseties withSwissmedicandtheSwissNetworkfor DigitalMedicalRegulation.

JetlindaKrasniqi,NicolasBopp,andJanKrutausemachinelearningtoextrapolateimmuneresponses,validatetheirworkin thelab,andfeedtheirresultsbackintocomputationalmodels,tobetterunderstanddiseaseandthebody’sresponse.

Listeningtothesecretsoftheimmunesystem Inbothexamplesyou’vegiven,itseemsthat understandingtheimmunesystem’sresponseto diseaseiskey.Whichresearchdirectionswill youtakeinthefuture?

Often,theimmunesystemrevealswhatis goingonbeforediseasestrikes.We’dliketomap outtheimmuneimprintofdiseases–acolossal task.I’minterestedinexploringandrevealingthe relationshipsbetweeninfection,cancerand immunediseases.

Todothis,myteamisstudyingmolecular dynamics.Thesearegiantnetworksthatfeature largeinputdata,whichAIiswellsuitedtohandle, butalsocomplexcombinatorialintermediate scenarios,forwhichquantumconceptsand quantumcomputingcouldhelp.Iexpectwewill useahybridapproachtouncoverthesecretsof howinfection,cancerandimmunediseases arerelated.

AIintheageofadisciplinarity

AIandlifesciencesarecomingtogether.Doyou consideryourselfaninterdisciplinaryresearcher?

Ithinkit’susefultousetheconceptofadisciplinaryinsteadofinterdisciplinary.Multiple disciplinesareevolvinginparallel.Somefields aremerging,whileothersaresplittingapart (e.g.theemergingbiochemistrybetweenbiology andchemistry.Myteamandmystudentsuse conceptsfromlifesciences,computerscience andbusinesstosolveaproblemathandby applyingprinciplesfromvariousandemerging disciplines.Soweareagnostictodisciplines inasense.

Thisappliesnotonlytoresearchprojectsbut alsototeaching,forexampleintheDigital TransformationinHealthcarecourseandevenin theHackLifehackathonwe’vebeenorganizing withProf.JaverzacattheFHNWSchoolofLife Sciencessince2022.Weaskorganisationsto presenttheirindustry-relevantchallenges,andwe useavarietyofapproachesincludingAI,MLand quantumcomputingtodevelopsolutionsthat shouldbepracticaltoimplementinabusiness context.

Andafinalwordabout‘hacking’–itusedto meanlearningtocode,nowitmeanslearning

toprompt.Largelanguagemodelshave changedtherulesofthegame.Themostfamous isChatGPTandtherearemanyothers.Using languagetoformulatepromptsisthelatest developmentthatmightrevolutionisenotonly complexscientificdisciplinesbuteveryday workandlife.

Partners: UniversityHospitalsStrasburg,Mainz,Freiburg; UniversitiesofPavia,Pamplona,Utrecht,Heidelberg; InstitutePasteur,UniversityofOslo

Financing: SNSFEUREKA32ER30-213721,Wellcome TrustInnovator’sAward

Prof.Dr.EnkelejdaMiho Groupleader,AIhealthlab +41612285847 enkelejda.miho@fhnw.ch

Ataglance

BasedinMuttenznearBasel,the FHNWSchoolofLifeSciencesispartof Europe’slargestlifesciencescluster. Itisherethatwetrainskilledspecialists andcomeupwithsolutionstothesocial andeconomicchallengesoftomorrow.

Ataglance: FHNWSchoolofLifeSciences

PEOPLE

300Staff Teaching,ResearchandSupport

800+Students

595BSc|232MSc 9International|70JointMaster's

100+ Participants inContinuingEducation

STUDYPROGRAMMES

11

DegreeProgrammes

8BSc|3MSc

30

ContinuingEducation MAS,CASandCourses

6Floors

atCampusMuttenz

5400m2

ofLaboratoryFacilities

577

ProjectsinCollaboration withNationaland International Industry

800+ LifeScience Companies

Process Technology Center

53 EuropeanProjects

32000+ LifeScience Jobs

AleadingUniversityof AppliedSciencesat theheartofEurope’slargest lifescienceregion

AtthenewCampusMuttenzintheheartofEurope’slargest lifesciencesregion,theFHNWSchoolofLifeSciencesdoes cutting-edgeresearchforabetterfuture.State-of-the-art infrastructureandequipment,includinganewProcessTechnologyCenter,enableourresearchersandindustrypartnersto worktogethertodevelopnewtechnologiesandproductsfrom concepttomarket.Thecampushasanideallocationcloseto publictransportandwithaviewoverBasel.

WhenyoucollaboratewiththeFHNWSchoolofLifeSciences, manyadvantagesawaityou.

Directcontacttoourapproachable expertsandtheirindustrialknowhow

Highlyqualifiedgraduateswithcloseto 100%placementratesinindustry

Efficientprojectexecution,inaccordancewith industrynormsandstandards

Moderncampusforcollegialexchangeand conferences,whereleadingmindsmeet

First-classlaboratoryandpilot-scale infrastructure

EstablishedrelationshipswiththeBaselArea LifeSciencescluster

Ourapplied researchexpertise

MedicalEngineeringand Informatics

Biofabrication

Additivemanufacturingofimplantsandorthopaedics

Diagnosticandtherapeuticdevicesandsensors

Computeraidedsurgeryandmedicaldecisionsupport

Medicalimageandsignalanalysis

AIandquantumcomputing

PharmaTechnologyand Biotechnology

Bioprocessing

Geneandcelltherapy

Drugformulation,deliveryandPK/PD

ChemistryandBioanalytics

Moleculardiagnostics

Proteins,enzymesandcellbiology

Nanotechnology,polymersandsurfaces

Chemistry,processes,andreactions

Analytics

Datascience

Ecopreneurship

Watertechnologies

Ecotoxicology

Circulareconomy

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FHNWSchoolofLifeSciences

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Firstedition March2025

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SchoolofLifeSciencesandLifeSciencesClusterBasel

TheFHNWincorporatestenschools:

–FHNWSchoolofAppliedPsychology

–FHNWSchoolofArchitecture,ConstructionandGeomatics

–FHNWBaselAcademyofArtandDesign

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– FHNWSchoolofLifeSciences

–FHNWBaselAcademyofMusic

–FHNWSchoolofEducation

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–FHNWSchoolofBusiness

FHNWUniversityofAppliedSciencesandArts

NorthwesternSwitzerland

SchoolofLifeSciences

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4132Muttenz

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