Making Medications Safer: NMI Participates in the HEARTCORE Project

Predicting whether active pharmaceutical ingredients are cardiotoxic – that is, whether they could damage the heart – is a key factor in their development. Researchers at the NMI, together with partners from academia and industry, aim to make these predictions more reliable. They are collaborating on the EU Pathfinder project HEARTCORE, which is led by Hannover Medical School (MHH).

To date, cardiotoxicity testing has relied either on animal models or highly simplified cell culture assays. The applicability of these results to humans is therefore limited.

Using heart organoids on microelectrode arrays, these predictions are expected to be significantly improved. “At HEARTCORE, we have set ourselves the goal of bringing safety testing in cardiology closer to human physiology,” explains Dr. Udo Kraushaar, project leader at the NMI and an expert in electrophysiology. “By combining state-of-the-art cardiac organoid biology with three-dimensional electrophysiological recordings and computer-aided modeling, we aim to create a more meaningful basis for the early assessment of drug safety.”

NMI scientist Dr. Peter Jones, an expert in the development of microelectrode arrays (MEAs), adds: “With our Mesh MEA – a wafer-thin mesh with integrated electrodes – we can measure electrical activity within the organoids and thus gain even better insights into how certain active ingredients affect heart cells.”

“HEARTCORE is developing the world’s first integrated platform that combines 3D human heart organoids, multilayer mesh MEAs, laser optoporation, and AI-based risk prediction – thereby enabling 3D electrophysiological recordings from human heart tissue,” summarizes Robert Zweigerdt, a professor at MHH and the project leader.

The HEARTCORE project is funded by the EU Pathfinder Program, which has very strict eligibility criteria. It is therefore a major success for the NMI and all other participants. The project is scheduled to run for four years and is funded by the EU with 3 million euros. (Grant ID: 101257413)

In addition to the MHH, which coordinates the overall project, and the NMI, the Universitat Politècnica de València, the Reutlingen-based company Multi Channel Systems GmbH (MCS), and the Italian startup Foresee Biosystems (FBS) are also participating in HEARTCORE.

Press release of MHH: https://www.mhh.de/presse-news/neue-test-plattform-fuer-herzsicherheit-von-medikamenten

HEARTCORE project page: https://www.heartcore-eic-pathfinder.eu/