2D Materials for Next Generation Healthcare Technologies (2D-Health)

这项计划拨款利用曼彻斯特大学(UOM)在石墨烯和2D材料方面的世界领先专业知识和研究基础设施，通过确定英国在生物技术和制药开发方面的领先地位，开发未来的疗法和产生创新的医疗技术平台。人们越来越需要为医疗保健、数字服务和其他创新开发新的创新技术，以更高效的方式提供医疗服务，并使患者和纳税人受益。近年来，国民保健服务(NHS)面临着越来越大的财政压力，这主要是由于人口增长和对NHS服务需求的增加。此外，不断增长的老龄化人口以及心血管疾病、痴呆症、癌症和糖尿病等疾病的发病率增加，大大增加了NHS的护理成本。目前迫切需要开发未来疗法的创新解决方案，以满足此类未得到满足的临床需求，降低NHS的成本负担，并提供更有效、更安全和以患者为中心的护理。2D材料是一个原子厚度的材料。这些平面晶体的家族非常大，包括过渡金属二卤化物、六方氮化硼和石墨烯等。总而言之，它们涵盖了广泛的特性(从导电到绝缘，从透明到不透明，从机械刚性到顺应性)，可用于创造具有广泛应用的新设备和技术。曼彻斯特大学率先开发了各种基于G2D的创新材料和技术，例如基于超亲水的石墨烯氧化物薄膜、用于可打印电子产品的2D材料水基墨水，以及用于无线可穿戴通信应用的基于石墨烯的打印技术。这些新开发的材料和技术具有巨大的生物医学潜力，可用于设计和设计新的医疗保健技术，以解决或改善未满足的临床需求。在2D-Health研究计划中，我们组建了一支由国际知名和备受尊敬的多学科研究人员组成的团队和一些世界领先的G2D研究人员，以利用G2D材料和技术提供的选定独特特性，并针对伤口护理和管理(与糖尿病相关)、通过电刺激进行组织康复(与痴呆症相关)、细胞疗法(与心血管疾病相关)；这项计划直接与EPSRC医疗保健技术优先事项保持一致，旨在开发未得到满足的临床需求的特定应用中的未来疗法，并利用几项贯穿各领域的能力：a)根据针对精确行业驱动使用的规格将G2D材料定制为先进材料，探索不同的化学修饰策略；b)开发用于跟踪和监测治疗干预的新型成像和传感技术；c)利用相关细胞和动物模型，通过临床前阶段为每个应用领域开发基于G2D的技术。与行业合作伙伴在快速临床翻译方面建立强大的合作伙伴关系，并与伦理学家和监管机构合作，旨在确保负责任和社会可接受的创新。

This Programme Grant capitalise on the world-leading expertise and research infrastructure on graphene and 2D materials available at the University of Manchester (UoM) to develop future therapies and generate innovative healthcare technology platforms by ascertaining UK leadership in biotech and pharmaceutical development.There is an increasing need to develop new innovative technologies for healthcare, digital services and other innovation with the vision to deliver health services in more efficient ways and with benefits to patients and taxpayers. The National Health Services (NHS) is under increasing financial pressure in recent years, mainly due to population growth and an increased demand on NHS services. In addition to that, a growing ageing population associated with increased prevalence of pathologies such as cardiovascular disease, dementias, cancer and diabetes significantly add to the cost of care in the NHS. Innovative solutions for development of future therapies that could respond to such unmet clinical needs, reduce the cost burden on the NHS and provide a more effective, safer and patient-centred care is highly needed now. 2D materials are one atom thick materials. The family of these flat crystals is very large and includes transition metal dichalcogenides, hexagonal boron nitride, and graphene among many others. Altogether, they cover a large range of properties (from conductive to insulating, from transparent to opaque, from mechanically stiff to compliant) that can be exploited for the creation of new devices and technologies with a wide range of applications. Various innovative G2D based materials and technologies have been pioneered at the University of Manchester such as the super-hydrophilic graphene oxide based membranes, 2D material water based inks for printable electronics, and graphene based printed technology for wireless wearable communication applications. These newly developed materials and technologies have great potential for use in biomedicine can be exploited for the design and engineering of novel healthcare technologies towards solutions or improvements of unmet clinical needs.In the 2D-Health research programme, we formed a team of internationally renowned and highly esteemed multi-disciplinary researchers and some of the world-leaders in G2D research in order to utilise selected unique properties offered by G2D materials and technologies and to develop innovative solutions for specific unmet clinical needs in wound care and management (relevant to diabetes); tissue rehabilitation by electrical stimulation (relevant to dementia); cell therapeutics (relevant to cardiovascular disease); and immunotherapeutics (relevant to cancer).This programme directly aligns to the EPSRC Healthcare Technologies priorities by aiming to develop future therapies in specific applications of unmet clinical need and draws on several cross-cutting capabilities: a) custom-design G2D materials into advanced materials under specifications aimed at a precise industry-driven use, exploring different chemical modification strategies; b) development of novel imaging and sensing technologies for tracking and monitoring therapeutic intervention; and c) develop G2D-based technologies through the preclinical stage for each of the application areas using relevant cellular and animal models. Strong partnership with industrial partners for rapid clinical translation and in collaboration with ethicists and regulators aims to ensure responsible and societally-acceptable innovations.