| NSF Org: |
TI Translational Impacts |
| Recipient: |
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| Initial Amendment Date: | January 26, 2017 |
| Latest Amendment Date: | January 26, 2017 |
| Award Number: | 1725033 |
| Award Instrument: | Standard Grant |
| Program Manager: |
Pamela McCauley
TI Translational Impacts TIP Directorate for Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships |
| Start Date: | March 1, 2017 |
| End Date: | August 31, 2018 (Estimated) |
| Total Intended Award Amount: | $50,000.00 |
| Total Awarded Amount to Date: | $50,000.00 |
| Funds Obligated to Date: |
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| Recipient Sponsored Research Office: |
6823 SAINT CHARLES AVE NEW ORLEANS LA US 70118-5665 (504)865-4000 |
| Sponsor Congressional District: |
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| Primary Place of Performance: |
6823 St. Charles Ave New Orleans LA US 70118-5698 |
| Primary Place of
Performance Congressional District: |
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| Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): |
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| Parent UEI: |
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| NSF Program(s): | I-Corps |
| Primary Program Source: |
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| Program Element Code(s): |
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| Award Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Fund Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Assistance Listing Number(s): | 47.084 |
ABSTRACT
The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project lies in novel non-contact technology for rheological testing of biological materials, polymeric liquids, and complex fluids. When used in healthcare industry, this acoustic tweezing rheometry technology allows for fast and reliable assessment of blood coagulation using small blood samples collected by a finger prick instead of venipuncture. Additionally, photo-optical tests used in plasma coagulation assays can be integrated in the acoustic tweezing device with viscoelastic tests used in whole blood analysis. The acoustic tweezing technology can dramatically improve the quality of care for millions of trauma, major surgery and coagulation disorders patients in the United States and worldwide. When used in petroleum industry, the potential application of the technology is reliable and accurate measurement of rheology and aging of crude oils, which is important for formulating optimal strategies for their extraction and transportation. In chemical and pharmaceutical industries, the technology could be very useful for preparation of polymer materials with required properties and small-scale containerless processing of unique polymer materials that lack impurities generated during polymer contact with solid walls.
This I-Corps project further develops a non-contact acoustic tweezing technology in which a drop of a fluid sample is levitated in air by acoustic radiation forces and its time-dependent rheological properties are measured from drop shape changes. Key disruptive features of this technology, tested using the laboratory prototype, are the increased reliability and accuracy due to non-contact measurement, the ability to assess temporal changes in rheological properties during processes such as polymerization and coagulation, small sample volume requirement and relatively short procedure time. The goal of this project is to do focused customer discovery work in the healthcare, petroleum, chemical and pharmaceutical industries to evaluate the commercial potential of the acoustic tweezing technology.
PROJECT OUTCOMES REPORT
Disclaimer
This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.
The goal of this project was to approach potential customers about a novel non-contact drop-of-blood coagulation monitoring technology, referred to as "acoustic tweezing elastometry", and, based on outcomes of customer interviews, pivot technology development toward the market that has unmet needs for the technology. 114 potential customers were interviewed during the entire life of the award. Interviewees included pediatricians, neonatologists, hematologists, registered nurses, anesthesiologists, phlebotomists, critical care physicians, surgeons, nephrologists, contractors in chemical and pharmaceutical industries, and scientists involved in the development of tobacco products. Through this customer discovery process, pediatrics has been demonstrated the greatest need for acoustic tweezing technology. The biggest pain point for pediatrics is a collection of too much blood from children for coagulation analysis. While more or less safe for adult patients, 2-3 ml of blood collected per one coagulation test bears a risk of anemia and forces pediatricians to order blood transfusions for neonates and small children. Based on this information, commercialization efforts have been pivoted toward the development of a pediatric blood coagulation analyzer.
In addition to acquired training in customer discovery, the research team of this project, consisting of two doctoral students (one of which was a minority student), one university faculty, and a seasoned entrepreneur, has been trained in lean entrepreneurship through a series of lectures and homework assignments, organized by the Upstate New York Node in April - May, 2017. Pivoting the acoustic tweezing technology to neonatal and pediatric healthcare will lead to the next generation of coagulation analyzers that provide reliable measurements with a single drop of blood and at a fraction of costs of current coagulation analysis. This novel technology will help save the lives of many young children with cardiovascular and coagulation abnormalities.
Last Modified: 01/31/2019
Modified by: Damir B Khismatullin
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