Algorithms for cancer diagnosis, a greenhouse gas catalyst and the spin-off Virmedex receive awards

Organised by the Board of Trustees of the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya - BarcelonaTech (UPC) and held every two years, the award carries €5,000 for each of the winning projects across its three categories. As in the previous edition, it has been supported by Fractus through the Fractus-UPC Deep Tech Hub.

Best technology transfer project
In the category of technology transfer projects carried out through research contract activity at the UPC, the award went to DigiPatICS, which uses AI tools to improve cancer diagnosis in Catalonia’s public hospitals. Coordinated at the University by Ferran Marqués of the Image Processing Group (GPI)  and developed jointly with the Catalan Health Institute (ICS), the project has produced advanced algorithms that help pathologists to detect and classify cells that react to immunohistochemical stains in tissue samples.

These algorithms make it possible to move from manually analysing small tissue areas under a microscope to automatically examining much larger regions, with higher statistical accuracy and clearer, more comprehensive visualisations. The project also involves a digitalisation process that enables all participating hospitals to securely share diagnostic quality images and analysis results in real time.

Its goal is to enhance patient safety and care quality. Although the initial focus has been breast cancer due to its high prevalence, affecting an estimated one in eight women, the team is now working on extending the system to other types of cancer.

The research team also includes Josep Ramon Casas, Montse Pardàs,  Philippe Salembier and Verónica Vilaplana, all members of the GPI, a research group affiliated with the Intelligent Data Science and Artificial Intelligence research centre (IDEAI-UPC).

A special mention in this category was awarded to a project led by researcher  Maria Alba Pérez of the Industrial Equipment Design Centre (CDEI), conducted in collaboration with Girbau, for innovation in the mechanical design and simulation of industrial laundry machinery. This work has contributed to continuous improvements in the efficiency, reliability and sustainability of Girbau’s products over the past 25 years.  

Best market-ready invention
The award for best market-ready invention went to Permanently Polarized Hydroxyapatite, a ceramic, biocompatible, noble-metal-free catalyst created by UPC researchers Marc Arnau, Jordi Sans and Carles Alemán of the Innovation in Materials and Molecular Engineering - Biomaterials for Regenerative Therapies group (IMEM-BRT), together with the R&D team at B Braun Surgical, led by Pau Turon. This catalyst can capture and transform greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide and nitrogen, into useful chemical products including methanol, ethanol and ammonia.

Because it does not require high pressures or temperatures, the technology addresses the urgent need for industrial solutions that not only reduce pollutant emissions but also convert them into valuable resources while lowering costs. This breakthrough has the potential to reshape how industries manage gaseous waste, creating economic value and reducing their carbon footprint.

Best technology-based spin-off
In the spin-off category, the award went to Virmedex Virtual Experiences, a spin-off jointly created by the UPC and the University of Barcelona to transform the training of healthcare professionals through virtual simulators based on video game technology, virtual reality and AI. The company emerged from the serious games division of the UPC’s Health Research and Innovation Institute (IRIS, formerly the Biomedical Engineering Research Centre). It was co-founded by three members of the research team: Daniela Tost Pardell, the company’s CEO and an associate professor in the UPC’s Department of Computer Science, Ariel von Barnekow and Núria Bonet Codina, both UPC alumni.

Its first project, VirtualPerfusionist, is a simulator designed to train healthcare professionals in the use of heart-lung machines, essential for procedures performed on a non-beating heart. Since then, the company has expanded its portfolio with new solutions for different clinical settings.