Approach

Diabetes is a condition that disrupts the body's ability to regulate blood sugar levels. In the case of Type1 diabetes, an abnormal activity of the immune system causes levels of insulin, the hormone regulating glucose in blood cells, to drop. The number of diabetes cases has more than doubled worldwide from 1980 to 2017, and is projected to reach 629 million cases by 2045.

MuSiC4Diabetes is a project funded by the European Innovation Council’s (EIC) Pathfinder programme that aims to enhance diabetes management technology while prioritizing portability. The project's primary focus is on improving treatment options for Type 1 diabetes by creating an innovative device that integrates advanced signal-sensing technology, precise insulin pumps, and algorithmic forecasting. This technology will later be transferrable to tackle Type 2 diabetes. Seven partners from four European countries will collaborate to achieve this ambitious goal.

On the one hand, the project wants to focus on improving substance monitoring to better track general metabolic health. Currently, glucose level sensing technology often relies on limited monitoring, which can fail to provide timely warnings to patients about sudden drops, leading to hypoglycaemia. Signal detection is a significant challenge that the project intends to address via a device measuring not only glucose, but also lactate (marker for an- aerobic or intense muscle activity) and ketone bodies (marker for fat-burning and secondary fuel source of the body). A new multi-metabolite control algorithm will then consider these three components simultaneously, enabling prompt and precise control actions. Precise control action will be carried via precise insulin delivery technology. Based on the data analysed by the control algorithm, a novel device will deliver real-time, tailored doses of insulin to meet the patient's immediate needs. To ensure long-term drug delivery, this micro-pump will be fully implantable and incorporate highly concentrated therapeutic substances.