Plasmalex plays a pivotal role as one of the project partners collaborating on the innovative VortexLC initiative.
Plasmalex, represented by Research and development manager Nicolas VandenCasteele is one of the project leaders of VortexLC project, funded by the European Union’s Horizon EIC Pathfinder. The goal of VortexLC is to pioneer the development of an affordable point-of-care device designed to elevate the quality of health analyses, providing diabetes patients with an instantaneous comprehensive overview of their health status.
Diabetes
In today’s landscape, diabetes stands out as a paramount health risk, almost reaching pandemic proportions. Its repercussions, including blindness, kidney failures, stroke, and heart attacks, not only contribute to soaring healthcare costs (accounting for 25% in the US) but also significantly diminish the quality of life for approximately 500 million people globally. The assessment of long-term glycemic control hinges on the level of hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), the most reliable predictor for the risk of developing chronic complications. The current gold standard involves expert laboratory High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) methods, specifically targeting HbA1c quantification. However, these methods face limitations when attempting to detect other relevant hemoglobin variants. This poses a challenge for the roughly 7% of the world’s population carrying such variants, as existing methods often lead to underestimation, overestimation, or non-estimation of the HbA1c fraction.
Revolutionizing Healthcare with Vortex Flows
Vortex flows emerge as a game-changing element in the VortexLC project. They enable an approach that is not only compatible with mass manufacturing of plastic pillar array columns but also proves to be significantly more cost-effective compared to traditional packed bed columns. Moreover, the utilization of vortex flows enhances separation performances, addressing the limitations encountered with existing methods.
The VortexLC Endeavor
This groundbreaking project, officially supported by the European Union’s Horizon EIC Pathfinder Open 2021, operates under the grant agreement ID 101047029.
The collaborative efforts of six esteemed European partners drive the project’s success. These include three entities from Vrije Universiteit Brussels—µFlow, B-PHOT, and the Laboratory of Hematology and Clinical Chemistry—joined by Joanneum Research in Austria, the National Center for Scientific Research Demokritos in Greece, and the French company CPI, part of the Plasmalex Group.
For more in-depth information about VortexLC, visit VortexLC’s official website.
Plasmalex’s involvement in the VortexLC project underscores a commitment to advancing healthcare solutions and addresses critical challenges in diabetes management. The collaborative efforts of the project partners signal a promising step towards revolutionizing point-of-care diagnostics and improving the overall well-being of individuals grappling with diabetes.
