Current Project Information
Client Information: Our client is UN&UP (https://www.unandup.com/) with our main point of contact being Michael Sabo (mes@unandup.com).
Need Statement: There is a need to shorten the time frostbite goes untreated and the time to localized drug delivery of a proprietary thrombolytic developed by UN&UP to improve frostbite patient treatment outcomes and increase extremity retention and function.
Project Scope: Physicians need a method to quickly and accurately deliver frostbite therapeutics to affected extremities where blood often coagulates. This timelier and more targeted therapeutic intervention utilizing a proprietary thrombolytic developed by UN&UP will improve patient outcomes allowing them to retain extremities and relevant function for a higher quality of life. The therapeutic localization device will be accessible to various orientations and sizes of digits and extremities, and the thrombolytic will reach extremities within 1 minute of device activation. Additionally, to test the validity of this device a realistic phantom reflecting the dynamics of extremity vasculature will be fabricated. A drug localization device, a realistic phantom, and all proper documentation to our client UN&UP by April 25, 2025.
Recent Activities
On Tuesday 1/28/25, the group traveled to UN&UP and successfully resolved issues with our solenoid testing. One main issue was the coating of the wire and getting proper solder connections. These experiments showed that a solenoid could successfully generate enough force to localize the nanoparticles and resist the force of gravity.
On Wednesday 1/29/25, an initial mold for a microfluidic mold was tested, results of this mold’s function should be available soon.
On Friday 1/31/25, the team met at UN&UP to meet with Mike Sabo over our recent successes, test motors and control systems for the permanent magnet system, and continue prototyping the solenoid to have modulated magnetic fluxes rather than a continuous field.
Future Steps
The team has a meeting set with Edwin Carlen, a microfluidics expert at WashU for next week (Monday 2/3/25), to go over some of our successes and trials with making our own microfluidic devices and keep the option of using WashU’s higher resolution facilities.
The team is currently setting a meeting with Dr. Ida Fox for 2/12, to get some clinical guidance on Frostbite etiology.
Questions/Things to Look Into
None.