1st international symposium on nano Computer Tomography (NANO CT)

Adverse immune reactions and resulting severe inflammation (acute or chronic) cause a significant challenge in modern biomedicine. The cost of revisions of e.g. hip implants alone costs between 15-30 kEuro per procedure and runs in the billions of Euro per year in the Euro zone. The IDP project aims at investigating the adsorption of intrinsically disordered proteins (IDP) in adverse immune reactions to particular designed titanium surfaces. The history of IDPs goes back to the 1960s, with Linus Pauling?s observation of the existence of regions in proteins with a disordered structure. However, Prof. Peter Tompa in Bruxelles and others demonstrated that it was possible to depart from the paradigm that a protein?s function is closely affiliated with its structure. The "structure-function" paradigm was not contested for many years until experimental data began to show that there was no stable three-dimensional structure for some protein fragments that had been attributed to particular functions. IDPs have lately been shown to play important roles in modulating immune reactions, in immune recognition, and in controlling calcification. However, new results show that also the unstructured or disordered regions can be crucial to protein function. The role of these IDPs in adverse immune reactions to material surfaces has so far not been studied. The project is expected to positively impact the fields of medical device development, biomaterials science, and implantology. The team aims at developing new technology and knowhow that can reduce the number of adverse immune reaction to materials.

Tomography imaging of medical, organic and biological samples are different from harder materials. Our nanoCT aims for a national platform softer X-rays and CT equipment for small and weak scattering samples, typical medical biopsies, soft materials and organic samples in the nano-scale. The platform is, in contrary to RECX funded CT machine not intended for material science studies of relatively large and highly absorbing samples (cement, core samples, building materials, rocks). The user group for nanoCT will be clinicians, researchers from biology, life sciences, functional and soft materials, biomaterials and medical sciences. This proposed educating and training seminar will increase clinician confidence in nanoscale tomography, supporting adoption of these technologies in their work and research. To promote quality in Norwegian health related nanotechnology research and cooperation, access to top-calibre research infrastructure is mandatory with involvement of best national and international research groups, as well as inspire talented students to pursue a career as a researcher. Multiple Norwegian research groups will benefit from nanoCT infrastructure such as the medical faculties, dental faculties, natural sciences, SINTEF, members of OsloMedTech, other nanotechnology industry as well as biology, material sciences, geology and astronomy. As a result, this current event will enable many new clinicians to become aware of and trained on the use of nano-CT. In addition, industry using the nano-materials will be aware of the benefits which these new nano-CT is capable of detecting. The awareness and use of nano-biomaterials is further bolstered by the introduction of innovative products and positive clinical data. The introduction of innovative products is also driving awareness of and training on the use of nanoCT.