Photonscore GmbH
Klosterwuhne 42
39124 Magdeburg
Tel.: +49-391-2579651
Fax: +49-391-2579659
HRB 24681 (Amtsgericht Stendal)
USt-IdNr.: DE313629415
Management: Yury Prokazov, Evgeny Turbin
Email: email@photonscore.de
Timespan 01.01.2019 – 31.12.2021
This collaborative project aims the research and development of an innovative, highly sensitive, in vivo camera for diagnosis of eye disorders. A prototype of this single photon counting camera (LINCam) has been developed by our collaborators from Photonscore GmbH. This camera is able to detect auto-fluorescence in live cells in vitro with very low light intensity (<50 mW/cm²) and without any additional labelling of the cells. These preliminary observations are very promising for our aim to detect eye disorders in rats and patients in vivo through fluorescence lifetime imaging by time-correlated single-photon counting (FLIM) as a very mild procedure. In order to employ this technique in vivo, we would like to benefit from our experience in ‘in vivo confocal neuroimaging’ (ICON). This well-established method was first described by Sabel et al. Nature Medicine, 1997 and can be used to detect pre-labelled retinal ganglion cells in narcotised rats. Initial comparison of both techniques will help us to determine parameters for in vivo imaging optimisation with the new camera. Therefore, subcellular changes need to be identified, the survival of sensitive cells such as neurons needs to be monitored and long term imaging effects need to be defined under normal and pathological conditions. Further development of a user friendly software tool will finally lead to the production of an EYECam prototype, which should not just be usable for basic research on eye structures in animals, but also as prototype for an eye diagnosis system usable for future patients.
Photonscore GmbH is a spin-off from Leibniz Institute for Neurobiology in Magdeburg.
The project “EXIST — Research Transfer: Photonscore — ultra-sensitive and ultra-fast research camera” is supported by the Federal Ministry of Economics and Energy (BMWi) and the European Social Fund (ESF) within the framework of the “EXIST — business start-ups from science” programme.
Additionally, our work was supported by BMBF Novel Optics, FKZ 13N10077; BMBF Biophotonic V, FKZ 13N12675; BMBF Research Campus STIMULATE, FKZ: 03FO16101C; DFG SFB 854 TPZ; DFG FOR 521 HA-3498/1-3.