microBioS, a ciTechCare project, whose purpose is to face the global problem of antimicrobial resistance, was awarded with the first prize of the Knowledge Circle Voucher Contest, last November 25, at the 1st Industry Open Day of Polytechnic Institute of Cávado and Ave (IPCA). 

By coincidence, the prize was announced on November 18, which is the European Antibiotic Awareness Day. This is an important milestone for the researchers, by seeing the recognition of their project as a suitable solution in this important day, since antimicrobial resistance is currently responsible for nearly 1 million deaths per year. 

The winning project, led by Sónia Gonçalves Pereira and Rui Fonseca-Pinto, already a registered trademark with national and international patents pending, intends to fast determine the antimicrobial susceptibility profiles of infection-causing bacteria, through an integrated technology of sample processing, data collection and analysis. Their aim is to accelerate targeted antibiotherapy.

Within the 21 competing projects, 4 were distinguished, 2 from Polytechnic of Leiria and 2 from IPCA.  

Knowledge Circle program aims to reinforce the economic potential of R&D projects from both institutions, by transferring scientific and technologic knowledge into business companies from the North and Center regions of Portugal. 

+INFO: https://ipca.pt/noticia/mais-de-100-empresas-presentes-no-1o-open-day-industria-do-ipca/ | https://knowledgecircle.pt/concurso/