Technologies

VisLab laboratory of IMM possesses a latest generation Raman micro-spectroscope equipped for vibrational measurements with high spatial and spectral resolution, at controlled temperature and in fast-imaging. The apparatus can be used to collect information and chemico-physical maps without the need for sample preparation and alteration, therefore for non-destructive studies and in operating conditions.

We developed a procedure aimed at simultaneously treating thousands of C.elegans model organisms, from eggs to old adult, in liquid, in 96- or 384-well plates. This procedure can be used to perform drug and toxicological screening of millions of compounds, in very small volumes and on millions of animals. Thanks to easy handling, semi-automatic analysis can be performed using plate readers or High Content Screening instruments.

The Nikon reference centre at IBPM ( www.imagingplatformibpmcnr.it ) is a microscopy platform for high resolution imaging of fixed samples and live cells (time-lapse video recording, both wide field and confocal spinning disk). Multimodal (fluorescence and transmitted light) and multidimensional (in x,y,z, 4 wavelengths, over time) acquisition modes are in place.

Characterization of authenticity of honey by the combined use of high resolution Nuclear Magnetic Resonance spectroscopy (NMR) and multivariate statistical analysis. Particularly, based on our database, different characterization involving authentication assessment, like botanical or geographical origin determination are possible. Moreover, it is possible to detect saccharides addictions like inulin, corn/malt syrups, and inverted sugar. Finally, it is possible to distinguish the Italian biological honey from the conventional one.

22q11.2DS(DGS) deletion syndrome is a rare and phenotypically variable multiorgan syndrome, currently without any cure. Our aim is to develop a standardized approach to formulate pharmacological products useful for clinical trials direct to prevent some serious clinical manifestations of adolescence and adulthood, such as neuropsychiatric and musculoskeletal diseases, or to eliminate or improve cardiovascular defects during embryonic development.

NIRS is a non-invasive technique for the human brain cortex imaging based on the measurement of the NIR light emitted by suitable optical sources placed on the patient head and backdiffused to the surface after passing through the brain tissues. NIRS monitors the percentage of oxygenated and reduced hemoglobin  in the blood, and it allows the real time functional imaging of the brain cortex also in tomographic mode (Diffuse Optical Tomography - DOT).

The technology based on cell or tissue cultures is very useful for the production of bioactive compounds. These molecules, depending on the class they belong to, can be used in the food, pharmaceutical and cosmetic industry. In particular, the developed technology is addressed to the optimization of bioactive compounds in plant cell/tissue cultures having the biosynthetic pathway of the compound of interest.

INCIPIT technology allowed the implementation of a multifunctional, micro-structured and electroconductive therapeutic product to treat patients with myocardial infarction, the leading cause of death for cardiovascular disease.  Current therapies (drugs, bypass, angioplasty) do not restore the functionality of damaged myocardial tissue.

The herein described technology aims at the development of a platform of injectable hydrogels for application as drug carriers for localized delivery or in the regenerative medicine field. The use of ad-hoc synthesized poly(ether urethane)s (PEUs) as hydrogel forming materials is a common property which characterizes all the systems belonging to this platform.

Uniform coverage with porous layers over extended surfaces is beneficial for many purposes. Depending on the nature/composition, thickness and interfaces of the layer, this kind of special coverage can assure pivotal properties such as transparency, bendability, high surface reactivity, intermixing capability. In the long list of desired porous materials, transparent oxides find application in the fields of Photovoltaics, Sensing, Photocatalysis, Water Purification and Splitting, Lithium Batteries and many more.

Mirrors for space applications, besides featuring suitable optical properties, should be light, resistant to mechanical stresses, and unsensitive to light-shadow thermal cycling. The standard optical materials easily fulfill optical and thermal requirements, but are fragile, and the mirrors must be thick (typically 1/6 of the diameter). For this reason they are heavy, and the only available solution is to lighten them, by removing material from the back side, still preserving the necessary mechanical robustness and optical quality.

We propose a compact innovative spectroscopy system operating in the UV range. In the actual version, designed for gas, it exhibits: an aluminium tubular optical chamber (length can be adjusted; currently is 20 cm); a cheap commercial UV LED; a SiC visible blind UV detector designed and manufactured at the CNR-IMM facilities. The team developed also the electronic chain for wireless remote real time read out; while able to deal with pA current levels, it uses very cheap components and construction technology.

The procedure enables the fabrication of nanocomposite membranes filled with suitable amounts of exfoliated bidimensional crystals. These are obtained with an advanced wet-jet milling technique, which provides desired thickness and lateral size of nanofillers through the pulverization and colloidal homogenization of bulk nanomaterials. The bidimensional crystals are dispersed in fluids and suitably delivered inside polymeric matrixes exhibiting a singular morphology.

The proposal concerns the development of the G.A.T.CD4 (Gliadin-activated CD4+ T cells) method which allows, in peripheral blood, the identification of CD4+ T lymphocytes reactive to toxic peptides of gliadin, the main gluten protein of cereals.

An innovative approach for the treatment of diabetic and venous ulcers, characterized by a difficult healing process and therefore at potential risk of infection and therefore of hospitalization and amputation of the limb, is represented by the local administration of "bioactive" factors through the use of synthetic and/or biological matrices that allow a gradual and controlled release in order to obtain a better and faster healing.