Early detection of ageing associated diseases or Traumatic Brain Injury are vital to ensure the best possible outcome for patients. Currently there is no technology with sufficient sensitivity or speed to test for the biomarkers at the point-of-care, slowing the treatment process.

Dr Pola Goldberg Oppenheimer from the School of Chemical Engineering has recently won a Royal Academy of Engineering Research Fellowship.  It is the first time a researcher from the University of Birmingham has received the award.

Her work will involve developing technology for the next generation of point-of-care diagnostics devices, designed to detect biomarkers at miniscule concentrations from blood or urine. Whilst focussing primarily on healthcare, the technology could also be deployed in bio warfare to detect anthrax poisoning; in food to detect contamination; or environmentally to detect pollution in water.

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Dr Goldberg said ‘The Fellowship is a fantastic opportunity to develop my research in a critical engineering problem, which could have far reaching impacts’.

The Research Fellowships have been awarded to eight outstanding researchers from across the UK, each aiming to tackle challenging engineering issues with a significant impact on industry and research. The Fellowship provides financial support and mentoring for the next five years.