Our Mission
CRUCIAL aims to identify the role of microvascular rarefaction in cognitive impairment and heart failure by developing innovative imaging instruments and taking advantage of non-contrast and AI methods. The project will provide diagnostic models that will prevent cognitive and heart disease progression, limit morbidity and improve the quality of life.
Objectives
Objective 1: To perform first clinical validation of advanced MRI techniques that can identify microvascular rarefaction in the brain and heart. Objective 2: To develop non- invasive measures that can be used as surrogate biomarkers for cerebral and/or cardiac rarefaction (such as sublingual capillary health, angiographs of the retina, or biomarkers isolated from circulating microvesicles). Objective 3: To relate rarefaction to cognitive function in patients with VCI and to myocardial dysfunction in patients with HFpEF. Objective 4: To identify microvascular rarefaction as a key mechanism in the development of VCI and HFpEF and assess molecular mechanism, using animal models of comorbidities. Objective 5: To promote the outputs of CRUCIAL to actors in the HF and VCI field through communication, dissemination and capacity building activities. To communicate with patients and ensure that they have input in the research protocols and benefit from the research. To communicate with business leaders to identify exploitation opportunities. |
Project Details
- Grant agreement ID: 848109
- Start Date: 1st January 2020
- End Date: 31st December 2024
- Coordinator: KATHOLIEKE UNIVERSITEIT LEUVEN
- Funded under: SOCIETAL CHALLENGES - Health, demographic change and well-being
- DOI
- EU Contribution: €6,000,000
Consortium
The consortium brings together 12 partners from multiple fields (clinicians, fundamental scientists, scientific SMEs, exploitation and dissemination SME, management SME, and a patient advocacy), representing 7 different countries.