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Bath-Led ‘GlucoBrain’ Project Wins £500,000 to Build Gut–Pancreas–Brain Organ-on-Chip

The pilot seeks to reveal how diabetic signals impair cognition by watching human tissues communicate in real time.

Overview

  • The University of Bath secured £500,000 from the EPSRC Health Technologies Connectivity Awards to develop the GlucoBrain device.
  • The chip will connect living human models of the gut, pancreas, and brain through tiny fluid channels to track glucose and hormone signals linked to memory loss.
  • The three-year pilot begins in October, starting with separate organ modules that will then be joined into one connected system.
  • Oxford researchers will guide diabetes and metabolic disease modeling, while Johns Hopkins brings Alzheimer’s and brain organoid expertise.
  • The team aims to speed drug testing, reduce animal use, and move toward personalized treatment screening using patient cells, with AI analysis planned for pattern-finding.