Project description
A 3D laser scanner provides a new window on the brain and neural circuits
Watching the brain in action is the ‘Holy Grail’ for the neuroscience community and new imaging techniques have contributed in important ways to making this possible. However, many of the biochemical and biophysical processes occuring through extended neuronal circuits take place in deep tissue on very fast time scales, making their capture and analysis even more difficult. Recently, EU-funded scientists developed a technique to visualise these processes with unprecedented spatio-temporal resolution. The new 3DSCAN project will support the research team in making the 3D scanning technique commercially available to the medical research community.
Objective
Understanding how the brain processes information is one of the unsolved grand challenges in science. Moreover, neurological disorders, which disrupt information processing, have an enormous societal and economic impact. Studying information processing in the brain requires measurements of signals as they flow through neural circuits. However, the 3D nature of brain circuits and the speed of information transfer makes it difficult for neuroscientists to measure their properties with sufficiently high spatial and temporal resolution. During the NEUROGAIN ERC project, we developed a novel type of Acousto-Optic Lens (AOL)-based high-speed 3D laser scanner. This technology enables the focusing and scanning of a laser beam at 20-40 kHz. This scanning technology can be added to existing two-photon microscopes to enable 3D imaging of neurons and circuits with unprecedented spatio-temporal resolution. Moreover, it also automatically corrects for brain movement in real-time providing sharper images. This ERC PoC will facilitate commercialization of this 3D scanning technology by providing support to explore the markets in biosciences and beyond, protect the IP and facilitate early stage manufacture and assembly of AOL 3D scanners to supply biomedical researchers.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques.
- natural sciencesphysical sciencesopticsmicroscopy
- medical and health sciencesbasic medicineneurology
- natural sciencescomputer and information sciencesdata sciencedata processing
- natural sciencesphysical sciencesopticslaser physics
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Programme(s)
Funding Scheme
ERC-POC-LS - ERC Proof of Concept Lump Sum PilotHost institution
WC1E 6BT London
United Kingdom