Neos Surgery, an innovative medical device company and CataloniaBio & HealthTech member, is part of a European consortium that has received €3.9 million from the European Commission to develop new treatments and medical devices to help improve quality of life for patients with multiple sclerosis. The funding is part of the Marie Sklodowska-Curie Initial Training Network under the Horizon 2020 programme.

The PMSMatTrain consortium will be hiring 15 early stage researchers with international experience. Two of these researchers will join the Neos Surgery team at Parc Tecnològic del Vallès (Barcelona). Candidates interested in this position can submit their application through the Euraxess portal now.

PMSMatTrain is coordinated by the University of Ireland Galway (NUI Galway) and made up of six universities and two companies from Germany, Belgium, Denmark, Spain, France, Italy and the Czech Republic. The principal investigator is Dr Una Fitzgerald, director of the Galway Neuroscience Centre at NUI Galway. Also participating in the consortium is the renowned Prof. Abhay Pandit, scientific director at the Centre for Research in Medical Devices (CÚRAM).

The project will combine competencies in biomarkers, stem-cell biology, neuroimmunology, biomaterials, in silico modelling of cerebrospinal-fluid flow, designing medical devices and more. Laia Rofes, Clinical Development & Project manager at Neos Surgery, explains that the Catalan company “will contribute our expertise in research, development, manufacturing and marketing medical devices for neuro-surgical applications.”

Multiple sclerosis is an immune disease that affects the central nervous system. In Europe, there are 700,000 people with the disease and 2.5 million in the world. Currently, there is only one therapy that modifies the disease, Ocrelizumab, which is approved to treat the progressive, degenerative stage and only appropriate for one segment of patients.

Photo: Dr Una Fitzgerald