Projects
Ultrafast Lasers for Therapy and Diagnostics (ULA)
Project leader – PhotoSana UAB, project partners: Ekspla UAB, State Research Institute Center for Innovative Medicine
PhotoSana UAB, a manufacturer of medical laser equipment, together with partners Ekspla UAB and the State Research Institute Center for Innovative Medicine, presents the project Ultrafast Lasers for Therapy and Diagnostics (ULA). During the research and development (R&D) activities, it is planned to create two products – a picosecond aesthetic medical laser system and a second harmonic wide field microscope. The first system will be a standalone certified medical device for the treatment of specific indications. The second product is a microscopy system developed as a diagnostic device for the diagnosis of various biological pathologies and the development of diagnostic methods. The project provides for R&D activities in areas of dermatology and rheumatology. The R&D activities are planned for development of devices, development of diagnostic and treatment methods, and pre-clinical research.
The innovation of the picosecond aesthetic medical laser system under development is the pulse duration, which is at least four times shorter than that of picosecond laser systems available in the market. The picosecond aesthetic medical laser system will be used for the removal of various pigmentary derivatives (melasma, coffee spots, nevus Ita and Ota, etc.), scarring and acne scars, traumatic and decorative tattoos, and for smoothing wrinkles. This system is of great benefit to patients as they will receive a more effective, safer and faster procedure for the elimination of unwanted derivatives.
Patients will be able to return to social life much faster. There is currently no 100 ps 200 mJ aesthetic medical device in the global medical device market. There is also no such device for medical use. The picosecond aesthetic medical laser system in development will be the first such medical device that can be used in various clinical studies.
The main innovation of the second harmonic wide field microscope is the rapid visualization of unstained specimens of large area (up to 25 cm2) using the second harmonic and two photon fluorescence techniques which will allow to apply the device for express diagnosis of pathologies in biological specimens. This microscope with two photon fluorescence excitement and recording capability, which enables separation of pathological areas without staining of specimens, will ensure a faster evaluation of the samples and allow for more research in a shorter time. Time and area under investigation are very important parameters for the application of this technology in practice. To date, there is no single commercially available second harmonic wide field microscopy system in the world. There is also no second harmonic wide field microscopy system that would allow to scan histological specimens in large-area.
Project is financed by the European Regional Development Fund and own funds of the project leader and partners. Total amount of the project is 548 085 EUR including 380 745 EUR funding received from the European Regional Development Fund for the implementation of the project.