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Research partnership has potential to benefit human and animal health
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The University of Prince Edward Island (UPEI), Ryerson University and Seno Medical Instruments of Texas have teamed up to form an exciting research partnership that has great potential to benefit human and animal health.
Through this collaboration, UPEI and Ryerson University will develop new biomedical applications for Seno Medical’s technology called opto-acoustic imaging, with applications in animal and human health, including cancer detection and treatment monitoring.
"This is an outstanding three-way partnership, building on the cooperative relationship between UPEI and Ryerson University and on the opto-acoustic imaging strengths of Seno Medical Instruments," says UPEI President Wade MacLauchlan. "This could lead to real advances in medical technology, and training opportunities for students."
“This project is a great example of how our researchers propel ideas and innovations into the community, industry and marketplace,” says Dr. Alan Shepard, Provost and Vice-president, Academic, at Ryerson University. “We look forward to continued interactions between researchers at Ryerson and UPEI, and opportunities to expand our research and academic connections in other disciplines.”
Leading the project are Dr. William Whelan, Canada Research Chair in Biomedical Optics and a member of the physics department at UPEI, and Dr. Michael Kolios, Canada Research Chair in Biomedical Applications of Ultrasound with the physics department at Ryerson University.
Dr. Whelan and Dr. Kolios are long time collaborators and have jointly received funding from federal and provincial granting agencies for their work, including NSERC, CIHR, NCIC, CFI and ACOA. Their joint research programs focus on developing minimally invasive technologies that use light and sound, instead of surgery or radiation, to deliver, monitor and assess cancer treatments.
For this work, they are using the first-ever commercially available opto-acoustic small animal imaging device, created by Seno Medical, a cancer-focused company located in San Antonio, Texas. Funding in excess of $2 million was recently secured by Whelan and Kolios to carry out the research.
With opto-acoustic imaging, laser pulses are directed into tissues, and if tumors are present, they will absorb the light energy and convert this energy absorption into an acoustic wave, which is picked up by the transducers embedded in a probe, similar to those used by ultrasound. Seno’s team likes to say “ we make the tumors speak to us.” Seno’s technology will be used to provide clinicians with new cancer tools that are capable of detecting the hallmarks of cancer, angiogensis and oxygen saturation.
“We are so pleased that UPEI and Ryerson have purchased the first-ever commercially available opto-acoustic small animal imaging device,” says Janet Campbell, Chair and CEO of Seno Medical Instruments. “Individuals such as Dr. Whelan and Dr. Kolios are truly performing groundbreaking applications with our technology. This project is tremendously valuable to cancer researchers and cancer patients, and we are proud to be part of it.”
Through this collaboration, UPEI and Ryerson University will develop new biomedical applications for Seno Medical’s technology called opto-acoustic imaging, with applications in animal and human health, including cancer detection and treatment monitoring.
"This is an outstanding three-way partnership, building on the cooperative relationship between UPEI and Ryerson University and on the opto-acoustic imaging strengths of Seno Medical Instruments," says UPEI President Wade MacLauchlan. "This could lead to real advances in medical technology, and training opportunities for students."
“This project is a great example of how our researchers propel ideas and innovations into the community, industry and marketplace,” says Dr. Alan Shepard, Provost and Vice-president, Academic, at Ryerson University. “We look forward to continued interactions between researchers at Ryerson and UPEI, and opportunities to expand our research and academic connections in other disciplines.”
Leading the project are Dr. William Whelan, Canada Research Chair in Biomedical Optics and a member of the physics department at UPEI, and Dr. Michael Kolios, Canada Research Chair in Biomedical Applications of Ultrasound with the physics department at Ryerson University.
Dr. Whelan and Dr. Kolios are long time collaborators and have jointly received funding from federal and provincial granting agencies for their work, including NSERC, CIHR, NCIC, CFI and ACOA. Their joint research programs focus on developing minimally invasive technologies that use light and sound, instead of surgery or radiation, to deliver, monitor and assess cancer treatments.
For this work, they are using the first-ever commercially available opto-acoustic small animal imaging device, created by Seno Medical, a cancer-focused company located in San Antonio, Texas. Funding in excess of $2 million was recently secured by Whelan and Kolios to carry out the research.
With opto-acoustic imaging, laser pulses are directed into tissues, and if tumors are present, they will absorb the light energy and convert this energy absorption into an acoustic wave, which is picked up by the transducers embedded in a probe, similar to those used by ultrasound. Seno’s team likes to say “ we make the tumors speak to us.” Seno’s technology will be used to provide clinicians with new cancer tools that are capable of detecting the hallmarks of cancer, angiogensis and oxygen saturation.
“We are so pleased that UPEI and Ryerson have purchased the first-ever commercially available opto-acoustic small animal imaging device,” says Janet Campbell, Chair and CEO of Seno Medical Instruments. “Individuals such as Dr. Whelan and Dr. Kolios are truly performing groundbreaking applications with our technology. This project is tremendously valuable to cancer researchers and cancer patients, and we are proud to be part of it.”
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