Enabling point-of-care testing

The project 'Micro- multi-material manufacture to enable multifunctional miniaturised devices' (M6) engages partners in four different countries of Asia and Europe to tackle these challenges. M6 is an EU-funded cross-cutting initiative that provides a virtual platform for research collaboration between specialists in innovative and future-oriented solutions.

Their research efforts are focused on a new generation of miniaturised devices that will make in vitro and in vivo diagnostics suitable for use at the point of care. In vitro diagnostics comprise reagents and instruments used to test specimens taken from the body. On the other hand, in vivo diagnostics encompass techniques that assess health status directly in the patient.

The M6 project's ultimate aim is to take medical diagnostics out of research and hospital labs, and bring them to the patient's bedside, where information on possible health risks could be provided in real time. Additionally, the reduction in the size of critical components of diagnostic devices to the micrometre range promises significant savings in time and permits the use of completely different functional principles.

In particular, miniaturised bio-analytical tools ( such as lab-on-a-chip systems ( meet the requirements that project partners defined for micro devices intended for use in near-patient medical diagnostics. The health monitoring technology being developed in the M6 project is based on an existing imaging platform for non-invasive blood flow assessment and automated testing with immune particle assays.

The M6 project also provides a virtual platform for postgraduate training. The goal of the training programme to inspire the interest of young scientists as well as linkages between experienced researchers that will lead to the establishment of joint research degrees. These joint training efforts are expected to strengthen the research collaboration between M6 partners in Asia and Europe.