Forschungsverbund: Bright Brain

The BrightBrain project represents a flagship initiative within the Engineering for Health research focus, aimed at advancing the precision of measurement in biomedical research in oder to get a better understanding of complex biological systems and translating this knowledge into individualized medical translation. Built on a strong interdisciplinary foundation, BrightBrain brings together expertise from the life sciences (neurobiology, physiology, pharmacy), engineering, computer science, and physics to develop next-generation measurement technologies that enable biological processes to be investigated with high precision under conditions that closely mimic the in vivo environment. By integrating microfluidic systems, microphotonics, and silicon-based microtechnology, the project facilitates minimally invasive, light-controlled experiments at the micro- and nanoscale, opening new avenues for the investigation of neuronal systems, organoids, and co-cultured tissue models, including the blood-brain barrier, cardiac tissue, and gut-associated epithelial and endothelial systems. Embedded in a collaborative research ecosystem that includes the Braunschweig Integrated Centre of Systems Biology (BRICS), the Center of Pharmaceutical Engineering (PVZ), and close cooperation with the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI), SKBS (Klinikum Braunschweig) and the DSMZ (Braunschweig), BrightBrain exemplifies cross-faculty and cross-disciplinary collaboration at TU Braunschweig. With neurodegenerative diseases serving as an initial testbed, the initiative seeks to elucidate fundamental disease mechanisms and to accelerate the development of predictive, cost-effective, and patient-specific therapeutic strategies for the major health challenges of an aging society.

BrightBrain project is funded by zukunft.niedersachsen under the TU Braunschweig initiative “Ecoversity”, the joint science funding program of the Lower Saxony Ministry of Science and Culture and the Volkswagen Foundation under the funding number 11-76251- 2714/2024 (ZN4545).