BIORIMA | 1st Interprofessional Nano Training School

1st Interprofessional Nano Training School

Leveraging Interprofessional Education to the Study of Nanosafety and Nanomedicine: Insights from the Horizon 2020 BIORIMA, GRACIOUS and NanoInformaTIX Projects Joint Training School.

Creating a meaningful dialogue about risk assessment and management of nano-(bio)materials through cross-cutting insights from nanosafety and nanomedicine fields was the mission of three EU-funded Horizon 2020 projects BIORIMA, GRACIOUS and NanoInformaTIX. They brought together 47 young researchers from across the globe (spanning Europe, North and Latin America) and 26 nanotechnology experts at the historic centre of Venice, Italy, over the week of 25 to 29 March 2019, for an intensive yet exciting training.

Inspired by the need to promote and foster a continuous dialogue between the nanosafety and nanomedicine communities, the Programme Committee of the school came up with the novel idea to design a training school combining Interprofessional Education (IPE) and Case-based Learning (CBL). While IPE promotes engagement and learning from students/professionals with different backgrounds, CBL aims to link theory to practice by the application of knowledge to real-world problems. Combining the two approaches grants that students use their background knowledge in an active way while developing new knowledge through interactions around the problems assigned to them.

Turning this idea into practice, prominent key note speakers featuring representatives from industry, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and the European Commission were invited to join forces with top nano-environmental, health and safety, and biomedicine professionals to deliver the 1st interprofessional education nano-focused training school "Cutting Edge Approaches for the Risk Assessment and Management of Nano-(bio)materials: From the Lab to the Market". Respectively, young researchers with different backgrounds (e.g. environmental science, chemistry, biology, physics, mathematics) were grouped together in highly interactive sessions to discuss and find solutions to posed problems on a number of diverse topics such as hazard to human health & environment, fate & exposure assessment, risk assessment & risk management, and nanomedicine. Further, the training was complemented with hands-on sessions on modelling, grouping and read-across approaches relevant for nano-(bio)materials risk assessment.

While the school proofed to be a successful synergistic effort among the three EU-funded projects BIORIMA, GRACIOUS and NanoInformaTIX, it made an important contribution to the training of the new generation of creative and innovative young researchers from the cross-cutting disciplines of nanosafety and nanomedicine. Furthermore, the adopted teaching approach was warmly welcomed by students as manifested in the results from a post-event evaluation survey: nearly 70 % of the students completing the survey found that CBL is a more efficient way to acquire new knowledge.

One of the delegates commented: "It was a great opportunity to network with students and researchers in the field, as well as a very constructive learning experience with interdisciplinary case studies."

Another added: "Group work, where people have different backgrounds, is very efficient. Case studies are great, they make you feel the subject".

The three projects continue to work together and are discussing collaboration options with other EU-funded initiatives to re-shape and deliver a future multidisciplinary nanosafety training agenda.

Project Facts:

BIORIMA aims to develop an Integrated Risk Management (IRM) framework for nano-(bio)materials used in advanced therapy medicinal products and medical devices.
Project Duration: 48 months, starting in November 2017
Consortium: BIORIMA brings together Europe's foremost experts in the fields of human and environmental safety assessment, nano-(bio)material analytical analysis and physico-chemical characterisation, in-silico modelling, exposure, and risk assessment. The BIORIMA consortium consists of 41 partners, spanning 14 countries in the EU. Additionally, there is strong global collaboration with partners also located in China and Japan.
Total Budget: 7.6 Million EUR

GRACIOUS develops a highly innovative science-based framework to enable practical application of Grouping, leading to Read Across and classification of nanomaterials and nanoforms.
Project Duration: 42 months, starting in January 2018
Consortium: The GRACIOUS consortium consists of 23 partners spanning Europe and the USA, including representatives from academia, industry, policy makers and regulators.
Total Budget: 7.1 Million EUR

NanoInformaTIX aims to develop, validate and implement a sustainable informatics framework, based on modelling of the entire life cycle, for the risk assessment of engineered nanomaterials for informing safer design of quality products.
Project Duration: 50 months, starting in January 2019
Consortium: NanoInformaTIX gathers 36 partners from 18 European and 4 international countries (Taiwan, China, South Africa, Israel), counting on renowned experts in the fields of nanomaterials safety, modelling, computational chemistry, toxicology and eco-toxicology.
Total Budget: 7,7 Million EUR

BIORIMA’s Final Public Event – Results, Reflections and Aspirations

A large audience of wide-ranging stakeholders logged on to take part in BIORIMA’s final public event, held on January 19th, 2022. Organised with polished efficiency by Lisa Bregoli and Stefania Melandri, Warrant Hub, the event comprised three distinct and engaging sessions: 1. Presentation of BIORIMA Final Results 2. Nanosafety projects response to real-world needs 3. NSC-community-activity “Brainstorming of future collaboration for nanobiomaterials risk assessment”

BIORIMA FINAL MEETING

The BIORIMA Project held its final meeting from 17th – 18th January, a large, well-attended gathering of project members from all partner organisations, the External Advisory Board, and Marcello Cacace, the Project Officer from the EC.

News from the BIORIMA Project

A safe and sustainable society and environment are the two pillars on which our future stands, and both have to be continuously supported and protected by transparent, long-sighted and science-based regulation that is shared by all actors involved. BIORIMA is contributing to these ongoing new regulatory needs by developing novel methodologies that help us to obtain the knowledge and tools to manage possible risks associated with emerging new materials, such as nano-biomaterials (NBM), when used in medical applications.

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