VPH-CaSE Final Newsletter

Newsletter 7: Goodbye VPH-CaSE

VPH-CaSE: A Marie Skłodowska-Curie Action.

Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) are a set of major mobility grants by the European Union/European Commission for all stages of a researcher’s career. Established in 1996 as Marie Curie Actions and known since 2014 as Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions, the fellowship programme aims to foster the career development and further training of researchers. These grants promote interdisciplinary research and international collaborations, supporting scientists from not only within Europe but also across the globe. MSCA fellowships are among Europe’s most competitive and prestigious awards, aimed at supporting the best and most promising scientists.

The MSCA supports researchers at all stages of their careers, regardless of age and nationality. Researchers working across all disciplines are eligible for funding. The MSCA also support cooperation between industry and academia and innovative training to enhance employability and career development.

VPH-CaSE supported 14 Early Stage Researchers.

Funder information This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 642612.

Final Issue - February 2019

Inside this issue Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions

1

The VPH-CaSE project

2

The Consortium

3

Training Activities

4-5

The VPH Conference

6-7

International Avicenna Alliance Conference

8-9

Researcher Mobility — Secondments

10 - 11

Outreach events

12 - 13

Journal Publications

14

Conferences Attended

15

Researcher updates

16 - 22

The Legacy of Marie Curie

23

Contact Details

24

VPH-CaSE — Cardiovascular Simulation and Experimentation for Personalised Medical Devices VPH-CaSE focused on state-of-the-art developments in personalised cardiovascular support, underpinned by simulation and experimentation, building on the foundations of the Virtual Physiological Human (VPH) Initiative. The Individual Research Projects of 14 Early Stage Researchers (ESRs) provided knowledge exchange across three research clusters:

The work of VPH-CaSE has been directed by the needs of industrial and clinical Beneficiaries and Partners, providing a truly multidisciplinary, multi-sectoral environment for the ESRs. This combined the expertise of 9 core Beneficiaries (5 academic, 4 industrial) and 16 Partners (10 clinical, 5 industrial, 1 academic) to provide scientific support, secondments and training.

(i) Cardiac tissue function and cardiac support

(iii) Image-based diagnosis and imaging quality assurance

Both researchers and supervisors were hosted in the Beneficiary institutions. These Universities and Companies provided context for the research and constitute an ideal environment for the development of each individual research project.

The aim of VPH-CaSE: The ESRs: 14 ESRs from 9 different countries were involved with the VPH-CaSE project in 9 institutions across 4 countries.

Their postgraduate studies were informed by a translational bias that delivered a competitive skill-set, equipping them to address the challenges presented by a career at the cutting edge of technological innovation in healthcare delivery. The inclusion of a technology translation SME within the consortium helped to promote the delivery of novel, tangible research outputs, providing benefits to a breadth of European sectors (eg. biomedical, clinical, VPH). The ultimate vision was the production of VPH-capable scientists with experience of tight integration of academic/industrial/clinical areas, able to apply their skills to real life scenarios, accelerating the acceptance of innovative and effective healthcare in the clinic.

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The core of the consortium are the Early Stage Researchers (ESRs), young scientists recruited under the highest standards of the European Commission. The ESRs developed research projects in areas related to cardiovascular simulation and experimentation, with a particular interest in personalised medical devices.

The Project Supervisors were the senior research partners of the consortium. Each is a renowned specialist in their field, providing the best possible counsel Europe has to offer and guiding the ESRs in their projects.

(ii) Cardiovascular haemodynamics – pathology and intervention

The ESRs found themselves in an enviable position to leverage the expertise of a strategic sector of the European medical devices/simulation industry and engage with the issues faced by clinical experts in the domain of cardiac medicine and cardiovascular support.

The VPH-CaSE project brought together partners from academia and industry, to train the next generation of researchers that will make important contributions in their respective fields.

The consortium Partners provided valuable assistance to the Supervisory Board. These Partners also offered the possibility of secondments, so the ESRs could experience training outside of their home institution.

The VPH-CaSE consortium ensured that the researchers gained experience in the three pillars of this project: academia, medical centres and industry.

VPH-CaSE Beneficiaries

VPH-CaSE Partners

Newsletter 7: Goodbye VPH-CaSE

Final Issue - February 2019

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VPH-CaSE — Four training activities for Researcher Development

Training Activity 3 Eindhoven, Netherlands - October 2016 Training Activity 3 took place in Eindhoven, hosted

by Technische Universiteit Eindhoven, from 3 – 7 October 2016.

Training Activity 1 Sheffield, UK - November 2015

The main objective of this event was to provide the ESRs with experimental training. The ESRs had the opportunity to use ultrasound and pressure and flow measurement techniques to acquire data from experimental setups resembling the human cardiovascular system. They were later encouraged to use diverse post-processing tools to extract important information from the data acquired during the experiments.

This was the first Network event the ESRs participated in following their recruitment and it took place at the University of Sheffield on the 17 and 18 November 2015. This first training activity was an opportunity to emphasise important Network priorities (Personal Development Plan, ethics etc.) and promote Network cohesion. In addition to the immediate outcomes from this training activity, this event addressed the important need to ensure all the ESRs appreciated the importance of ethics for their research and understood the wider network-level training to be delivered by VPH-CaSE.

The ESRs visited LifeTec Group to take part in a PhysioHeart experiment. This was a great opportunity to observe how experimental work in industry can be used to test medical devices, provide training for clinicians and serve as a tool for research.

The training event coincided with the Mid-term review for the project. A representative from the European Commission was present and evaluated the status of the project and provided recommendations to be followed in its remaining two years. During this review the Supervisory Board and the ESRs took the opportunity to present achievements thus far and describe the future prospects of the research projects. The EC representative was suitably impressed, motivating the students with encouraging recommendations.

Training Activity 2 Milan, Italy - June 2016 Training Activity 2 took place in Milan at the Politecnico di Milano from 13 – 17 June 2016.

The training was targeted at the presentation of some of the most advanced modelling techniques for the design and development of endovascular devices as well as description of the main features of industrial R&D and production processes.

The programme also included visits to the production sites of two major medical device companies in Italy, Medtronic – Endovascular Therapies and LivaNova (formerly Sorin Group Italia), both VPH-CaSE Partners.

During the social elements of the training activity, there was a significant opportunity for the ESRs to network and discuss the progress of their projects as a cohort.

This proactive approach ensured they developed confidence with their research and helped to maximise the benefits of the network-wide training.

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Newsletter 7: Goodbye VPH-CaSE

Final Issue - February 2019

Training Activity 4 Lyon, France - June 2017 The fourth training activity took place in Lyon from the 19 – 23 of June, 2017 and was hosted by the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique.

The focus of this training activity was to provide the early stage researchers with the abilities they would need to transition from academia into industry. The ESRs were exposed to a range of scenarios, from launching their own start-up to working for a multinational company.

Lectures covered various aspects of developing research in industry. The ESRs attended presentations about the long process from conception of a medical device to the introduction of that device in the market exploring aspects of each step along the way. Clinical trials were discussed as well as focussing on their PhD research and protecting intellectual property, so the research idea can become a successful start-up business. Guest presentations included real-life success stories of PhD students that had launched their own start-up businesses.

Finally, to show how R&D works in the industrial environment, the ESRs took part in two visits. First, they went to the CERMEP imaging centre, located in the East Hospital in Lyon. This is a research centre that offers medical imaging platforms (CT, MRI, PET-CT) to perform in vivo clinical and pre-clinical trials. Secondly, the ESRs visited the headquarters of EDAP-TMS, a worldwide leader in High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound therapeutic devices. In both visits the ESRs were able to pose numerous questions that allowed better understanding of the role of scientific staff in the industrial world.

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The VPH-CaSE Conference Training Activity 5 Frontiers of Simulation and Experimentation for Personalized Cardiovascular Management and Treatment London, UK - July 2018 The fifth training activity took place in London from 19 – 20 July 2018. It was hosted by University College London.

Within this training activity, VPH-CaSE organised the “Frontiers of Simulation and Experimentation for Personalised Cardiovascular Management and Treatment conference”, which aimed to bring together young researchers from around the world working at the frontier of cardiovascular research. The conference provided early stage researchers with a platform to showcase their results. The event promoted discussion with experienced scientists, engineers, educators and other young investigators about the latest ideas in cardiovascular engineering for personalised Cardiovascular Management and Treatment.

The best work of the Conference was invited to submit full papers for a special issue in both the journal Medical Engineering and Physics and the ASME Journal of Engineering and Science in Medical Diagnostics and Therapy (to be published 2019).

A plenary industry career session held on the first day enabled discussion of career progression for early researchers. Evangelos Emmanouil from Cambridge Consultants, Adrian Walker from Leeds Test Objects Ltd and Cesar Pichardo from Certara led the session.

In particular the conference focused on working towards translation of the tools, methods and approaches presented in the context of cardiovascular disease. It provided a truly multi-disciplinary and dynamic environment with both Industrial and Clinical participants.

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Newsletter 7: Goodbye VPH-CaSE

Final Issue - February 2019

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ESR Outreach - International Avicenna Alliance Conference 4 September 2018

in vivo, in vitro, in silico: Why computer modelling is the next evolution of the healthcare sector VPH-CaSE at the European Parliament, Brussels, Belgium Audience: Mixed - industry, clinicians, scientists, engineers, politicians Attendees: 80-100 people VPH-CaSE was invited to showcase its work at the Avicenna Alliance event in the European Parliament on 4th September 2018. This was to be an adjunct to the main Avicenna activity, aimed at promoting in silico simulation for drug/device design as well as support for in silico clinical trials. VPH-CaSE contributed to two activities beginning with a press conference in the morning followed by a representation in the European Parliament in the afternoon. Preparation for the event involved a prior visit to ANSYS premises in Lyon to clarify strategy and three example case studies were identified, resulting in the secondment of three ESRs to Lyon, based on the clinical relevance of their research. ESR simulation data was converted to suitable formats, enabling them

In September 2018, the Avicenna Alliance supported a large-scale international conference in the European Parliament presenting the newest developments of in silico medicine. The conference had a global dimension, bringing together speakers from the EU, USA and India.

The collective work of Avicenna members from around the world was showcased. Speakers including EU policy makers and a representative from the FDA presented key insights on their perspectives on computer modelling and simulation in healthcare.

“With in silico offering an understanding of complexity on a scale never before known in human history, the concept of the right treatment for the right patient at the right time no longer becomes an aspiration – it becomes standard practice” For more information see: avicenna-alliance.com

Example Case Studies provided by VPH-CaSE

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Newsletter 7: Goodbye VPH-CaSE

to be configured for exposure via 3D PDF, 3D printing and Virtual Reality. The following month a subset of the VPH-CaSE Lyon team travelled to Brussels to attend the Avicenna meeting. This required significant amounts of equipment (portable display booth, posters, 3D prints, iPads, Virtual Reality etc.) requiring two hours to set-up including calibration of the Virtual Reality technology.

A press event was held at the Renaissance Hotel in the morning attended by around 20 people and led by senior representatives from the Avicenna Alliance, the FDA and Medtronic. The theme was the value of simulation as a tool to accelerate development of healthcare devices at reduced cost. In addition to their presentations, the several

Final Issue - February 2019

industry participants that were present were also invited to give a two minute talk on the role of simulation in their work, this included VPH-CaSE. During the lunch period the VPH-CaSE booth was on show, and the VPH-CaSE representatives were able to discuss the context of in silico simulation exemplified using iPads, 3D prints and Virtual Reality.

The exhibition was relocated to the European parliament during the afternoon for a further evening event. In this venue, VPH-CaSE provided the ‘entertainment’ for the evening reception, following the Avicenna conference.

This was a very different audience to the press conference in the morning comprised of industry experts, engineers, scientists and clinicians. Here, the interest in our work was considerable. It was gratifying to see the project so well received, ably communicated through the medium of 3D PDFs, 3D prints and Virtual Reality.

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VPH-CaSE Researcher Mobility, Secondment Activities Each ESR took part in a minimum of three secondment activities over the project period, one clinical, one industrial and one academic.

Clinical Secondments

Industrial Secondments

Academic Secondments

“A scientist in his laboratory is not a mere technician: he is also a child confronting natural phenomena that impress him as though they were fairy tales.�

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Newsletter 7: Goodbye VPH-CaSE

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VPH-CaSE - Outreach activities

“We must have perseverance and above all confidence in ourselves. We must believe that we are gifted for something and that this thing must be attained”

Each ESR took part in at least three outreach events during their project.

BME Research Day

Women in Engineering Taster Day

TU/e, Eindhoven April 2016

UCL, London July 2016

Researchers Night

The Future is Now

STEM for Britain

UCL, London March 2017

POLIMI, Milan September 2017

London January 2018

March 2018

2017

Festival of Life

Researchers Night

USFD, Sheffield April 2016

USFD, Sheffield September 2016

Hearts and How to Heal them UCL, London July 2018

2016

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Minor’s Fair

2018

MechEng Showcase Live!

3 minute Thesis Competition

Chemistry in the Square

UCL, London June 2017

UCL, London June 2017

POLIMI, Milan September 2017

Newsletter 7: Goodbye VPH-CaSE

Final Issue - February 2019

Fete de la Science

By the Deep, By the Mark

Avicenna Alliance

Lyon October 2017

Somerset House, London Jan - April 2018

Brussels September 2018

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Journal Publications by the ESRs

Further details of all publications are on the VPH-CaSE website:

A selection of conferences attended by the ESRs

vph-case.eu

Title

Journal

Conference

Where

Date

A computational model of heat loss and water condensation in gas side of blood oxygenators

Artificial Organs

Computer Methods in Biomechanics and Biomedical Engineering CMBBE 2017

Tel Aviv, Israel

2016

A framework for computational fluid dynamic analyses of patient-specific stented coronary arteries from optical coherence tomography images. Medical Engineering and Physics.

Medical Engineering and Physics

Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society EMBC 2016

Florida, US

2016

A Patient-Specific Study Investigating the Relation between Coronary Hemodynamics and Neo-Intimal Thickening after Bifurcation Stenting with a Polymeric Bioresorbable Scaffold

Italian Chapter of the European Society of Biomechanics Conference 2016

Naples, Italy

2016

Open Access Journal Applied Sciences

Virtual Physiological Human VPH2016

Amsterdam, Netherlands

2016

A simplified method to account for wall motion in patient-specific blood flow simulations of Aortic Dissection: comparison with Fluid-Structure Interaction

Medical Engineering and Physics

Artimino Conference on Medical Ultrasound Technology 2017

Artimino, Italy

2017

Bridging organ and cellular-level behavior in ex-vivo experimental platforms using populations of models of cardiac electrophysiology

ASME Journal of Engineering and Science in Medical Diagnostics and Therapy

BSSM 12th International Conference on Advances in Experimental Mechanics 2017

Sheffield, UK

2017

Computational Tools for Clinical Support: A multi-scale compliant model for haemodynamic simulations in aortic dissection based on multi-modal imaging data

Journal of the Royal Society Interface

Computational Vision and Medial Image Processing VipIMAGE 2017

Porto, Portugal

2017

Feasibility of mapping and cannulation of the porcine epicardial lymphatic system for sampling and decompression in heart failure research

Journal of Clinical and Translational Research

Department of Biomedical Engineering BME 2017

Eindhoven

2017

European Society of Biomaterial ESB 2017

Athens, Greece

2017

Full-field analysis of epicardial strain in an in vitro porcine heart platform

Journal of the Mechanical Behavior of Biomedical Materials

European Symposium of Vascular Biomaterials 2017

Strasbourg, France

2017

Patient-specific modeling of stented coronary arteries reconstructed from optical coherence tomography: towards a widespread clinical use of fluid dynamics analyses

Journal of Cardiovascular Translational Research

Functional Imaging and Modelling of the Heart FIMH 2017

Toronto, Canada

2017

Reconstruction of stented coronary arteries from optical coherence tomography images: feasibility, validation, and repeatability of a segmentation method

Public Library of Science (PLOS) One

IEEE International Ultrasonics Symposium 2017

Washington, USA

2017

International Digital Image Correlation Society iDICs Conference 2017

Barcelona, Spain

2017

The accuracy of 3D optical reconstruction and additive manufacturing processes in reproducing detailed subject-specific anatomy

Journal of Imaging (Special issue Three-Dimensional Printing and Imaging)

Marie-Sklodowsa Curie Alumni Association and General Assembly 2017

Salamanca, Spain

2017

The ring vortex: concepts for a novel complex flow phantom for medical imaging

Open Journal of Medical Imaging

Proceedings of Computing in Cardiology 2017

Rennes, France.

2017

Ultrasound functional imaging in an ex vivo beating porcine heart platform

Physics and Medicine in Biology

Recherche en Imagerie et Technologies pour la Santé RITS 2017

Lyon, France

2017

Virtual TEVAR: Overcoming the Roadblocks of In-Silico Tools for Aortic Dissection Treatment’

Theranostics

A combined modeling and machine learning approach for the early detection of coronary heart disease*

Public Library of Science (PLOS) Computational Biology

Shear Stress Symposium 2017

Rotterdam, Netherlands

2017

BSSM 13th International Conference on Advances in Experimental Mechanics 2018

Southampton, UK

2018

A complex flow phantom for medical imaging: ring vortex phantom design and technical specification*

Physics in Medicine & Biology

National Congress of Bioengineering GNB 2018

Milan, Italy

2018

Prediction of Post-Storage Cardiac Function from Cardioplegic effluent in an ex vivo Porcine Heart Model*

Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation

IEEE International Ultrasonics symposium 2018

Kobe, Japan

2018

Comparison between Multi Line Transmission and Diverging Wave Imaging: motion artefacts and their effect on motion estimation*

IEEE Transactions on Ultrasonics, Ferroelectrics and Frequency Control

International Society for Mechanical Circulatory Support ISMCS 2018

Tokyo, Japan

2018

Detection of Long-Term Changes to Electrophysiology in Heart Failure Using Populations of Models: Validation on an Ex-Vivo Platform*

UCL Institutional Research Information Service (IRIS)

The British Medical Ultrasound Society – Ultrasound 2018

Manchester, UK

2018

Virtual Physiological Human VPH2018

Zaragoza, Spain

2018

Echocardiographic assessment of left bundle branch related strain dyssynchrony: a comparison with tagged MRI*

European Heart Journal - Cardiovascular Imaging

World Congress of Biomechanics 2018

Dublin, Ireland

2018

Imaging the contraction of mechanically supported ex vivo Beating Hearts*

Artificial Organs

London, UK

2018

Physiology of normothermic ex vivo heart perfusion: A slaughterhouse porcine model*

BMC Cardiovascular Disorders

Young Researchers’ Conference “Frontiers of Simulation and Experimentation for Personalised Cardiovascular Management and Treatment” 2018 European Society of Radiology – ECR annual congress 2019

Vienna, Austria

2019

*Submitted.

Following the conference held at Training Activity 5, the ESRs have submitted papers to two special issues: Medical Engineering and Physics and the ASME Journal of Engineering and Science in Medical Diagnostics and Therapy.

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Newsletter 7: Goodbye VPH-CaSE

Final Issue - February 2019

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Researcher updates

You can find a complete bio of the ESRs

Ring vortex

of the VPH-CaSE network on our website:

Ring vortex

www.vph-case.eu

Heart

LVAD

Simone Ferrari

Simone Ambrogio

University of Sheffield,

Leeds Test Objects

Sheffield, UK

Leeds, UK

Louis Fixsen

Towards a Complex Flow

Development of a Complex

Standard for Diagnostic

Flow Phantom for Diagnostic

University of Sheffield,

Technische Universiteit

Imaging

Imaging

Sheffield, UK

Eindhoven, Netherlands

Full-field analysis of strain in

Imaging the contraction of

cardiac tissues

mechanically supported ex

Paolo Ferraiuoli

vivo hearts

At the end of my contract as a Marie Curie fellow at the University of Sheffield I moved to London. I am currently devoting myself to the writing of my PhD thesis and publishing of articles related to the experiments I carried out at LifeTec Group with Louis and Ben. My plan for the future is to start a new job as soon as my thesis is submitted, so I would be able to focus entirely on a new adventure. I would love to go back to Italy to apply all the experiences and skills I developed throughout my Marie Curie fellowship in my own country to contribute to its development.

“VPH-CaSE was a great experience for my professional and personal development”

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I am currently working on 2 manuscripts, these will be my first publications and outputs from VPH-CaSE, and will both go in my thesis. For the time being I am trying to focus on the first of these, and looking forward to having it finished! With over a year left, I still have a lot of ideas and small projects I am in the middle of, as well as collaborations with other researchers at my university.

Hopefully I can turn some of these into publications to complete my thesis. I am still a bit unsure of what I will do after my PhD, I have a lot of options which I have been able to sample through the project. I know I will remain in research though.

I am currently writing up my thesis, and looking for opportunities in research (academic or industrial). The collaborations established during my PhD, both within and outside the VPH-CaSE network, allowed me to experience different perspectives, also contributing to my professional development. In the future, I am considering applying for a fellowship.

“As a part of the Marie Curie network that includes academic, clinical, and industrial partners, my professional development benefits from the heterogeneous environment.

It also allows us to pursue different careers.”

“I am very happy about the choice I have made. It really gives me the opportunity to grow professionally, increase my knowledge, and interact daily with very smart people.”

“I was quite eager to participate in a project like this since cardiovascular diseases affect such a large portion of the population.”

Newsletter 7: Goodbye VPH-CaSE

My PhD programme took place in the R&D department of Leeds Test Objects Ltd in partnership with the University of Sheffield. LTO Ltd is a manufacturer of medical imaging phantoms. It benefits from a wide network of universities and research institutions to deliver innovative solutions for image quality assurance of medical devices. I was pleased to accept a job offer as a biomedical engineer in the R&D department of LTO Ltd at the end of my VPH-CaSE contract. I am involved in several projects, including the development of Ultrasound tissue equivalent materials, multimodal phantoms, X-Ray sensors and moving test objects. I am collaborating in projects with research institutions of the National Health System (NHS), with the National Physical Laboratory (NPL) and the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR).

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Vasculature

Mirko Bonfanti University College London London, UK Pre & Post Operative In-Silico Planning for Aortic Dissections

Lung

Massimiliano Mercuri Therenva Rennes, France

parameters for hemodynamics

Ricardo Gómez Bardón

simulation using patient data

Politecnico di Milano

Tuning of boundary conditions

Milan, Italy

At the end of my ESR fellowship within VPH-CaSE at the end of August 2018, I started a new position as Research Assistant at the Wellcome/EPSRC Centre for Interventional and Surgical Sciences (WEISS) at University College London. WEISS is a world-leading research centre focused on the translation of cutting-edge biomedical engineering research to the clinic. The research there is developed in a multi-disciplinary environment, where biomedical engineers, medical physicists, computer scientists and medical doctors collaborate, combine both the engineering and clinical sciences and aim to ensure that innovative solutions will reach the clinic and benefit patients. As part of my work at WEISS, I am collaborating on the development of a state-of-the-art platform for precision vascular medicine that combines in-vivo, in-vitro and in-silico tools. In the meantime, I’m writing my PhD thesis which I aim to defend by Summer 2019.

I am currently working on my PhD thesis and am now employed as a research engineer at Therenva.

Therenva is based in Rennes, France and the team there create innovative and efficient imaging solutions for cardiovascular procedures such as EndoSize 3D and EndoNaut.

“My project is mainly focused on the possibility to build up a simulation toolchain that is able, from patient specific data, to predict specific outputs that are frequently assessed in an invasive way.”

“Being part of a Marie-Curie network gives you the opportunity to work and exchange ideas with many other researchers all over Europe.

The secondments and the network activities part of the training are perfect occasions to escape the routine of your individual research, learn new things and visit new places.”

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Lung, heart and circulation

Multi-scale and multi-physics methodologies for blood

CNRS Lyon, France High-frame rate ultrasound methodologies for cardiac applications

oxygenators design

I moved back to Madrid at the end of my contract and since October 2018 I have been working in Dassault Systèmes as an application engineer for XFlow, a LatticeBoltzmann CFD package. Dassault is one of the largest software companies in the world, with its HQ in Paris. It is focused in 3D design, some of its best known products are Abaqus or Catia. The office in Madrid is a R&D centre for CFD software, and my role is a bridge between the customers and the developers. I work on many different aspects, including aerospace, acoustics and bioengineering. In December I had my thesis defense at Politecnico di Milano and received the PhD title with Cum Laude.

“My project goal is to develop innovative methodologies for an optimized design of artificial lungs, using computational and experimental techniques.”

Newsletter 7: Goodbye VPH-CaSE

Emilia Badescu

Final Issue - February 2019

I had my thesis defense in December 2018, so I am finally a PhD. I then took some weeks off to see my family and friends. It was a good way to recover from the busy time I had at the end of my PhD. Right now I am still working on finishing an article and in parallel am actively looking for jobs. In the very near future, I would like to work as an engineer in signal/ image processing in a company that allows me to develop and evolve continuously. Hopefully that would help me to acquire more experience and advance towards a project manager role in the long term.

“I think a successful PhD should be able to inspire future projects; either in academia, industry, or clinical settings. In addition, the development of the PhD students themselves is an important parameter as well.”

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Inside of heart

Heart section

Heart

Heart mesh

Gerardo Kenny Rumindo CNRS Lyon, France Predictive cardiac modelling for the study of myocardial injuries

I have just submitted my doctoral dissertation and my defense is planned for February 2019. In the meantime, I am writing two journal papers and one conference submission as the last dissemination of my research outcomes. When the work contract that I had with CNRS finally terminated in the end of 2018, I started actively looking for new working opportunities in similar areas to my PhD. My professional objective is currently to be a recognized expert in the development of medical devices/ tools, mainly using simulations, modelling, and statistical approaches. I am hoping to find an interesting opportunity to help me reach my objective soon!

“Through our work, we have investigated new cardiac biomarkers, coined as Stiffness and Contractility Indices, that are able to predict the progress of the functional status of heart muscles after acute myocardial infarction.”

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Eric Chen

Carlos Ledezma

Benjamin Kappler

Eindhoven University

University College London

LifeTec Group

of Technology

London, UK

Eindhoven, Netherlands

Cardiac Electrical Models and

Quality Management of a

3D Modeling of Cardiac

Machine Learning Techniques

slaughterhouse-based isolated

Contraction in LVAD-

for the Assessment of Heart

beating heart platform

supported patients

Diseases

Eindhoven, Netherlands

My plans related to work and education for this current year are to continue conducting research, writing and publishing articles, and presenting my work at conferences. I’ll also be working on my thesis so that I can hopefully defend in early 2020. After that, the future is still undecided but I am looking at options related to research in industry.

“Hopefully we will be able to model the failing heart on a computer so that we can study what happens when a heart has a VAD implanted. Using this technique we hope to be able to devise patient-specific controls of the pump in order to promote the heart’s natural healing process.”

Newsletter 7: Goodbye VPH-CaSE

I am now working at a startup called nPlan and my role is Machine Learning Engineer. nPlan is developing machine learning models that enable us to predict risk in massive construction projects. The company was founded over a year ago and has the potential to have a positive impact in the world. During my PhD I had the opportunity to take a number of courses in machine learning and startup management, so I have been able to adapt to the team and make important contributions to the development of machine learning algorithms.

I am enrolled in a PhD program at the AMC in Amsterdam and will hopefully get my PhD by the end of 2019. In the meantime I am looking for some new opportunities in business and project development.

“Research is all about gaining knowledge. I like to solve existing problems and the process of proving or disproving hypotheses.”

“In my work I used computer models to simulate the behaviour of the human heart, statistical methods simulate variability and machine learning to understand that variability”. Using this combined approach, I am working to determine what non-invasive measurements are relevant to detect specific diseases such as arrhythmias, ischemia, cardiac failure.”

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Vessel and stent

“Nothing in life is to be feared, it is only to be understood. Now is the time to understand more, so that we may fear less.”

Heart and vessels

Marie Skłodowska Curie 1867—1934

Marie Skłodowska Curie - the scientist, the legacy Susanna Migliori

Jeroen Feher

Politecnico di Milano

ANSYS

Milan, Italy

Lyon, France

Patient-specific modelling of

Reduced order modelling

stented coronary bifurcations:

toolkit applied to hemody-

a validated, OCT-based recon-

namics for diagnostic and

struction methodology for CFD

interventional medicine

analyses

I was awarded the PhD in Bioengineering at the end of 2018 and now work as a Research Scientist in Caristo Diagnostics (www.caristo.com). Caristo Diagnostics is a startup of the University of Oxford where activity is focused on the creation of software for the diagnosis of coronary inflammation from CT scans. Caristo’s novel technology transforms the diagnostic accuracy of routine coronary CT angiograms, a test used to identify patients with suspected heart disease. Using artificial intelligence, our proprietary technology provides unique insights about inflammation in the coronary arteries, the root cause of most heart attacks.

I will develop the algorithms and characterize performance of the core fat attenuation index (FAI) analysis.

“Being a Marie Curie ESR has allowed me to travel more than would have been possible in a traditional PhD. I had an opportunity to collaborate with different institutions and experience how each one approaches research and development. But more importantly and enjoyable was that it gave me the chance to meet many wonderful people including the ESRs within the network.”

“We developed a framework to study the outcomes of stenting procedures in terms of fluid dynamics quantities. The hemodynamics in treated coronary artery segments of 16 patients were simulated and the results were disseminated as journal papers.”

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Marie Skłodowska was born in Warsaw in 1867, into a family of teachers. In 1891, she went to Paris to study physics and mathematics at the Sorbonne where she met and married Pierre Curie, a professor at the School of Physics and Chemistry.

The Curies worked together investigating radioactivity, building on the work of the German physicist Roentgen and the French physicist Becquerel. In July 1898, the Curies announced the discovery of a new chemical element, polonium. At the end of the year, they announced the discovery of another, radium.

The Curies, along with Becquerel, were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1903 and Marie became the first woman to win a Nobel Prize.

A century and a half after her birth, the name Marie Skłodowska-Curie is associated not only with this double-Nobel-prizewinning scientific inspiration, but also with a whole community of European scientists: the Marie Skłodowska-Curie fellows.

Since the programme was introduced by the European Commission in 1990, these fellowships have

After Pierre was killed in a road accident, Marie took over his teaching post, becoming the first woman to teach at the Sorbonne, and devoted herself to continuing the work they had begun together. She received a second Nobel Prize, for Chemistry, in 1911 becoming the only person to win a Nobel Prize in two different sciences.

The Curie’s research was crucial to the development of X-rays in surgery. During World War One Marie helped to equip ambulances with X-ray equipment, which she helped drive to the front lines. The International Red Cross made her head of its radiological service.

By the late 1920s Marie Curie’s health was beginning to deteriorate. She died in 1934 aged 66 from aplastic anaemia, probably caused by exposure to high-energy radiation from her research.

benefitted more than 100,000 scientists at all stages of their careers. Above all, the programme aims to promote international and interdisciplinary mobility and excellence in research across all fields.

They are all a tribute to the remarkable imprint she has left in science. Undeniably, Marie SkłodowskaCurie herself would be proud of this success.

From: en.wikiquote.org; www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/curie_marie.shtml; en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marie_Curie; www.nobelprize.org/prizes/physics/1903/marie-curie/questions-and-answers/; cds.cern.ch/record/2295040

Newsletter 7: Goodbye VPH-CaSE

Final Issue - February 2019

23

The VPH-CaSE project has been an immense success for all concerned.

A group of talented researchers have taken part in the project to become highly trained individuals in the field of cardiovascular science.

Some have already completed and passed their PhDs and are already employed, others are well on the way to finishing. The students have been helped and encouraged not only by their supervisors, but by a team of supporting individuals involved in the project and encouraging them along the way. Our thanks go to everyone who has helped to make VPH-CaSE a success over the last four years.

...to all our ESRs - good luck in your future careers!

Contact details Dr John Fenner, Dr Andrew Narracott (Scientific Coordinators), Department of Infection, Immunity & Cardiovascular Disease, Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry & Health, University of Sheffield, Medical School, Beech Hill Road, Sheffield S10 2RX, United Kingdom Email: j.w.fenner@sheffield.ac.uk a.j.narracott@sheffield.ac.uk Tel: +44 (0114) 2159526, 2159540

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