NIHRDataInsights/HRCSData huggingface dataset:
Title: OGI - Follow on fund application
Funder: Innovate UK

Abstract: In the microbiology sector, early stage R&D involves large amounts of manually culturing microbial samples. This is inefficient for companies, who would like to automate, but existing automation is expensive and tailored for mammalian cultures. Furthermore, the current method for estimating microbial growth doesn't provide sufficient information for industrial biotechnology applications, pharmacological work on antimicrobial resistance or academic research, because all these sectors require accurate information on cell morphology as well as cell number and biomass. OGI will offer customers an inexpensive route into routine microbial culturing on a system that is smaller than more expensive systems currently available but is also modular, allowing customers to retrofit additional functionality to our system as and when required. This includes novel and increased analytical information such as inline, automatic microscopy imaging of individual cells within the population and inline Raman spectroscopy.


Research activity codes: 1.5 RESOURCES AND INFRASTRUCTURE (UNDERPINNING);2.6 RESOURCES AND INFRASTRUCTURE (AETIOLOGY)
Health categories: GENERIC HEALTH RELEVANCE
Title: An Innovative AI Platform That Improves the Wellbeing and Quality of Life of Older Adults and Reduces Isolation
Funder: Innovate UK

Abstract: There is currently a critical gap in the market for a platform that not only addresses older adults' health needs related to ageing and wellbeing, but that targets those needs in a personalised way. Oomph is a quickly growing UK-based SME that is creating the only platform that addresses those needs. Using artificial intelligence and algorithms, Oomph's platform targets users' specific needs by taking into account their medical history and providing personalised exercise plans, as well as connecting users to the community. This adaptable system will give older adults more independence in the management of their wellbeing, helping relieve care homes and the NHS from labour and financial costs. Oomph's plan is to revolutionise the health and social care industry by providing a critical technology-based solution for older adults' health and well-being needs.


Research activity codes: 3.1 PRIMARY PREVENTION INTERVENTIONS TO MODIFY BEHAVIOURS OR PROMOTE WELL-BEING;7.1 INDIVIDUAL CARE NEEDS
Health categories: GENERIC HEALTH RELEVANCE
Title: HeroRehab: Improving preventative care, functional fitness and mobility of people as they age or recover from injuries/surgery from the comfort of their home
Funder: Innovate UK

Abstract: Hero currently provides a more accessible, live body-tracking solution for hyper-personalised health and wellness guidance for the corporate wellness market. By comparing users' exercises against Hero's trainers, Hero learns and feeds back (live, during the exercise) on what they are doing well and areas of improvement, just like individuals would get with a real personal trainer. Hero's precision live-body tracking software, with the motivation/guidance of a human trainer, allows every workout to be personalised to help individuals get fitter, manage a health condition, or enhance their existing workout/exercise routines. In this project, Hero intends to provide at-home fitness (preventative) and injury recovery services to become both affordable and accessible, providing premium, personalised guidance across multiple use cases, and accurately reporting data to clinicians/physios. The concept of home rehabilitation holds high relevance for people with a disability and debilitating condition, or chronic illness that affects their physical abilities and mobility. Hero will significantly improve on existing offerings in the healthy ageing and rehabilitation spaces by providing earlier treatments/interventions, versatile data insights, convenience and privacy, being more affordable and accessible and being developed with human-centred design in-mind for specific audience segments and use cases, coordinating with health care settings and professionals.


Research activity codes: 5.3 MEDICAL DEVICES
Health categories: GENERIC HEALTH RELEVANCE
Title: AI-Powered Health Products Regulatory Navigation Platform
Funder: Innovate UK

Abstract: The proposed solution aims to develop a proof of concept digital regulatory navigation tool that provides end-to-end guidance to help medical product manufacturers bring their products in the UK and EU and be compliant to all applicable requirements. The application will include AI-assisted terminology suggestions to ensure consistent usage of terms in the relevant standards. It will also include AI-assisted product classification to help users classify their products to the correct SNOMED/GMDN terms. Depending on the product and market, the application will show the relevant regulatory pathway to ensure compliance from clinical trials to marking to manufacturing to sales, and also incorporate relevant support materials to help users easily navigate through the regulatory compliance.


Research activity codes: 5.9 RESOURCES AND INFRASTRUCTURE (TREATMENT DEVELOPMENT)
Health categories: GENERIC HEALTH RELEVANCE
Title: Decentralising precision medicine patient recruitment and clinical trial research to accelerate drug development
Funder: Innovate UK

Abstract: Traditionally outsourced to Contract research organisations ("CROs"), and run through in-person visits to the clinical trial sites, the clinical trial process has not changed since the 1980s. Over the past ten years, there has been a monumental shift in our ability to collect and analyse genomic data due to continued innovation and reduced DNA sequencing costs. By the nature of personalised medicine, finding patients is complex, with very selective inclusion/exclusion criteria to enrol participants into trials. The CROs have a cost-plus model where they rely on bricks-and-mortar sites for patient recruitment, which often do not have adequate infrastructure or patient access. This is particularly hard given the fragmentation of genomic data across government, academia, consumer platforms and healthcare providers, many of which do not meet the high quality of information required for gene therapy trials. This combination results in significant time and cost inefficiencies and a high failure rate for patient enrolment. Clinical trials in genetic neurodegenerative diseases, and other common complex diseases in particular take a significant amount of time, resources, and funding to recruit the right patients at the right stage of disease, with many failing due to poor recruitment and engagement. Taking up to 15 years and ~£119m to bring to market, potential therapies often show promise in Phase 2 trial results, then prove to be ineffective or face enrolment challenges in the subsequent, larger-scale Phase 3 trials. The focus of this innovation is to develop a fully decentralised (at-home and digital first) genetic testing platform that combines: Genetic counselling Non-invasive sample collection Bioinformatics Return of results In one platform, available in multiple languages across the UK and EU. The output of the innovation will be an end-to-end platform for providing non-invasive sample collection, proprietary bioinformatics analysis, genetic counselling, and return of results that can be provisioned on independent cloud infrastructure in order to enable the operation of decentralised genetic testing studies across a range of jurisdictions with different data privacy regulations. The solution will address rare and common genetic diseases across three major customer segments: biopharma, biotechnology, and population genomics.


Research activity codes: 6.9 RESOURCES AND INFRASTRUCTURE (TREATMENT EVALUATION);8.4 RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGIES (HEALTH SERVICES)
Health categories: GENERIC HEALTH RELEVANCE
Title: Quantum Enhanced Computing Platform for Pharmaceutical R&D - QuPharma
Funder: Innovate UK

Abstract: The covid 19 pandemic underlined the importance of quick and efficient development of drugs and vaccines, that are safe to deploy for wider use. Despite impressive developments during the pandemic, drug discovery remains a very long and expensive with very low probability of success. Identifying useful substances with suitable properties for specific diseases is very difficult task, even for the most powerful supercomputer. More than half of the few drugs that enter the phase of human trials, do not get approval for commercial use, with all the effort related to that going to waste. Quantum computing is a new type of supercomputer that works differently than current computers. Based on the exotic properties of quantum mechanics, they will be able to solve very complicated problems, that are currently unsolvable in a short amount of time; modelling the properties of drugs is one of these problems. Quantum computers can help scientists select and study more and better substances in order to deliver faster more efficient drugs for the benefit of all. In this project, we will develop a quantum computer and use it alongside a classical supercomputer to solve problems that are of real value to the pharmaceutical companies. SeeQC and Riverlane, two of the most successful UK-based companies developing quantum hardware and software respectively will join forces to develop a useful quantum machine. SeeQC will work with the Oxford Instruments to improve the quantum hardware, while Riverlane will develop the software to operate the quantum machine and the quantum algorithms to be used for the calculations. With the help of Merck, a global pharmaceutical company, the University of Oxford and the Medicines Discovery Catapult we will identify some of the pain points of the drug discovery process where quantum computers can help. We will solve them by interleaving our quantum machine with a very powerful supercomputer, that belongs to the Science and Technology funding Council. In this way, the most demanding part of the calculations will be solved on the quantum machine. This trick will deliver more accurate results ten times faster than standard computers. The UK is a world leader in the pharmaceutical sector and a pioneer in developing the quantum technology industry. This project is of real national value as it will boost the development of quantum computers, while showing how useful they can be in solving major problems of a very important industry.


Research activity codes: 5.1 PHARMACEUTICALS
Health categories: GENERIC HEALTH RELEVANCE
Title: A method for system-wide identification of target proteins and their ligands from complex extracts of natural products
Funder: Innovate UK

Abstract: Ageing populations, increasing rates of lifestyle-related conditions and costs of drug development/healthcare provision represents a global societal challenge. 'Self-care' - "the ability of individuals, families and communities to promote health, prevent disease, maintain health, and to cope with illness and disability with or without the support of a healthcare provider" (WHO) - will contribute towards meeting this challenge. Natural products - compounds produced by living organisms - account for close to 20% of the Nutraceuticals industry, and there is a rising consumer inclination towards them. Wide structural diversity and evolutionary pressures mean natural products have strong potential to interact with proteins and impart effects on human health; evidenced by 25% of New Chemical Entities approved between 2010-2014 being natural products or derivatives (Newman and Cragg 2016). Alongside individual "active" compounds (e.g. curcumin from Turmeric root), many natural products are complex extracts containing 100s-1000s of compounds; sometimes further complicated in preparations of several species (Ayurvedic and Traditional Chinese Medicines). This complexity may be important for health benefits through synergistic interactions between compounds e.g. "entourage effect" noted for Cannabis (Ben-Shabat _et. al.,_ 1998). However, this complexity and inherent variability of natural products (genetic, environmental, cultivation, processing, extraction factors) makes substantiation of claimed health benefits difficult and leaves consumers ill-informed and under-served. There is a recognised need to provide well-specified natural products with standardised biochemical properties and demonstrated efficacy in humans. Current methods can provide insight into health-relevant Mechanism of Action for natural products, based on biomarker response signatures or the identification of protein targets. Similarly, bioassay guided fractionation or affinity purification methods (using protein targets as bait) can support identification of active compounds within complex natural products. However, no current method can identify Mechanism of Action and active compounds concurrently and typically rely on prior knowledge of one or other factor. To address the challenge, the partners aim to combine the principles from existing chemoproteomic approaches to develop a novel method to identify active compounds for natural products and their target proteins in human cells in parallel on a system-wide level. This capability will enable decoding of natural products and their activities, and support development of better-specified products for the nutraceuticals market, with a comparatively high level of scientific understanding at competitive cost to better serve customer, brands and regulators needs.


Research activity codes: 2.5 RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGIES (AETIOLOGY)
Health categories: GENERIC HEALTH RELEVANCE
Title: ProjectCare: Disrupting the Social Care Industry with a Platform to Consumer Model
Funder: Innovate UK

Abstract: The social care sector in the UK is best by crisis. Several, overlapping crisises are rolled into one. Local authorities are struggling to find adequate funding for social care, with their spending power reduced by over a third in the past decade, putting a massive strain on services. The means-tested approach to social care provision has not risen with inflation, pushing millions into debt as they are forced to self-fund their own care. The sector is best by a sever shortcare for care workers: demanding workloads and low pay have combined to create a vacancy list of over 100,000 paid carers. All these pressures are leading to a diminishing quality of care as care providers offer one-size-fits-all packages, limiting at-home visits by carers with strict time slots that do not allow enough time for good-quality care. Working with our partners, Sitekit are proposing a Platform-to-Consumer product -- ProjectCare -- that gives individuals choice and control over who cares for them and what tasks they do. ProjectCare: a platform and user interface - will disrupt the adult social care market, placing individuals at the centre of their care by matching those needing care directly with those that can meet their needs and ensuring that care is delivered on Buurtzorg-inspired, relationship-centered principles. Our approach is based on the hypothesis that business models adopted from elsewhere in the tech industry can help drive the personalization and improvement of care. Building on the 'sharing economy' model that has driven innovation in other sectors, we will disrupt current models of social care provision by creating a platform that gives its three member groups what they need: Citizens will get direct access to the types of services they need, delivered to them on a Buurtzog-inspired care model that will improve care outcomes. Social Care providers will get market access and opportunities and Public Bodies will enjoy a consolidated social care market and greater insight into current and future needs. ProjectCare will create a revolution in long-term care, by developing and piloting in one geography our platform, demonstrating results and then scaling progressively across the country. The platform will provide a framework that will eventually enable service providers such as home care providers, concierge services, home visitors, dog walkers, gardeners and even, potentially, drivers, to offer applicable services that will enable people to take more control of their care or their time if they care for others.


Research activity codes: 8.1 ORGANISATION AND DELIVERY OF SERVICES
Health categories: GENERIC HEALTH RELEVANCE
Title: ALIS (Automated Laparoscopic Instrument Stabiliser) to enable “solo” keyhole surgery and more cost-effective medical procedures.
Funder: Innovate UK

Abstract: With the 4th industrial revolution upon us, the development and evolution of surgical instruments and procedures have gathered pace. The classic tools of open surgery are being transformed into new devices whose mission is to evolve towards the "super-surgeon," i.e. a surgeon who can carry out their work faster, more efficiently, and with fewer errors (Taylor, 2003). However, despite this mission, significant inefficiencies remain, particularly in the field of minimally invasive surgery (MIS). Today, a range of advanced techniques in MIS is being performed in gynaecology, cardiac surgery, orthopaedic surgery, and general surgery. MIS general surgery is referred to as laparoscopic surgery and usually requires two to three surgical assistants to perform. However, the healthcare system can significantly reduce costs, improve resource efficiency and safety by reducing the number of assistants required to perform laparoscopic surgery. There is a need for surgeons to perform routine laparoscopic procedures solo. The primary instrument used in laparoscopic surgery is a camera or laparoscope inserted in the patient's body through tiny incisions to provide a view inside. Unfortunately, due to the laparoscope's size, weight, and shape, a surgical camera assistant operates the laparoscope. The operation of the laparoscope needs fine adjustment for the correct aiming of the laparoscope at the surgical field. Camera assistants sometimes operate the laparoscope according to a surgeon's instructions; however, camera assistants need to operate the laparoscope using their judgment to understand the surgeon's intentions to move the laparoscope according to how the surgery progresses. The operation of a laparoscope by camera assistants requires as much proficiency as that of surgeons. It is not unusual for surgery to be interrupted due to a camera assistant not being sufficiently proficient in using the laparoscope. To solve this problem, Smart Surgical Appliances Ltd has commenced the development of an automated laparoscopic instrument stabiliser (ALIS) or camera robot that can hold and position a laparoscope instead of a human camera assistant. The ALIS device is small in size and lightweight to be mounted on the patient with ease and in a short space of time. The operating surgeon directly controls the ALIS device via a foot mouse, allowing the surgeon to define their exact surgical view and perform solo laparoscopic procedures. This will improve operating theatre efficiency, safety, cost and enable healthcare institutions to manage resources more efficiently to drive improvements to meet growing patient demands.


Research activity codes: 6.4 SURGERY
Health categories: GENERIC HEALTH RELEVANCE
Title: Radar Healthcare- Advanced data integration for improved care delivery to address an Ageing Society Grand Challenge
Funder: Innovate UK

Abstract: With the combined support of Innovate-UK and investment finance from 24 Haymarket, Smartgate Solutions Ltd (trading as Radar-Healthcare) aim to address an identified gap in Elderly patient care through the development of a proprietary tech-agnostic workflow engine capable of automatically capturing and interpreting data generated from the growing range of data sources used in the Care sector. If successful, not only will the solution consolidate data inputs into one centralised easy to use platform but will also enable the automatic detection of data anomalies for earlier patient intervention and the benchmarking of performance across different care environments helping to address care inequalities


Research activity codes: 8.1 ORGANISATION AND DELIVERY OF SERVICES
Health categories: GENERIC HEALTH RELEVANCE
Title: University of Essex and Open Medical Limited KTP 21_22 R4
Funder: Innovate UK

Abstract: To develop a clinical pathway management platform, featuring state-of-the-art information indexing and retrieval capabilities, to better manage critical medical data. Powered by NLP & ML, and incorporating novel cloud search technologies, the system will derive medical insights, and better manage critical medical data, with greater speed, accuracy and transparency, reducing errors.


Research activity codes: 8.4 RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGIES (HEALTH SERVICES)
Health categories: GENERIC HEALTH RELEVANCE
Title: University of Kent (The) and The Hurley Group KTP 21_22 R2
Funder: Innovate UK

Abstract: To create a population health and business analytics platform, utilising Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning to improve health outcomes. The better use of data will lead to improved efficiency and quality of primary care provision.


Research activity codes: 8.4 RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGIES (HEALTH SERVICES)
Health categories: GENERIC HEALTH RELEVANCE
Title: University College London and Aber Instruments Limited
Funder: Innovate UK

Abstract: To develop new dielectric impedance spectro scopy techniques (an online tool to monitor cells) which will improve the cost efficiency and performance of cell therapy product manufacture.


Research activity codes: 2.5 RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGIES (AETIOLOGY);5.2 CELLULAR AND GENE THERAPIES
Health categories: GENERIC HEALTH RELEVANCE
Title: University of Aberdeen and EnteroBiotix Limited
Funder: Innovate UK

Abstract: To develop knowledge and technology that enables the scale up of the production of live donor-sourced bacteria to support the manufacture of novel intestinal microbiome derived medicinal products to prevent and treat disease.


Research activity codes: 5.2 CELLULAR AND GENE THERAPIES;2.5 RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGIES (AETIOLOGY)
Health categories: GENERIC HEALTH RELEVANCE
Title: Advancing analytical innovation and education for integrated continuous manufacturing of therapeutic biomolecules
Funder: Innovate UK

Abstract: The vast majority of vaccines and biological drugs are manufactured in a batch process as a one off and then divided into smaller units of the supplied medicine. Because there can be differences between batches, and to lower production costs and enhance quality, there is much interest from the drug approval agencies and the drug manufacturers to produce drugs in a continuous production line manner. This new approach requires the development of modified processes, new monitoring tools, and new control systems to ensure high performance so that it can be widely adopted. The project allows a university-industry team to evaluate pioneering technology, and, in the exchange of ideas and knowledge, help a university to be better able to educate of the next generation of medicines manufactucting scientists.


Research activity codes: 5.1 PHARMACEUTICALS
Health categories: GENERIC HEALTH RELEVANCE
Title: University of Exeter and Health and Care Innovations Limited 21_22 R2
Funder: Innovate UK

Abstract: To develop and embed new behavioural science capabilities, to enable them to enhance their leading CONNECTPlus healthcare app with innovative capabilities to support patient outcomes and better healthcare delivery.


Research activity codes: 7.1 INDIVIDUAL CARE NEEDS;8.1 ORGANISATION AND DELIVERY OF SERVICES
Health categories: GENERIC HEALTH RELEVANCE
Title: University of Hull (The) and Network Communication Systems Limited
Funder: Innovate UK

Abstract: To create an intelligent hand held, non-intrusive vital sign monitoring device for use in many sectors of the care industry for the ageing population. It will empower users and carers to prevent the occurrence of clinical incidents and/or limit their severity for the user.


Research activity codes: 5.3 MEDICAL DEVICES
Health categories: GENERIC HEALTH RELEVANCE