University of Nicosia in project to combat brain diseases

The University of Nicosia (UNic) is a partner in the Alameda project, alongside 14 other partners from eight different European countries, committed to researching and prototyping the next generation of personalised AI healthcare support systems for people with brain diseases and disorders – specifically focusing on the needs of patients with Parkinson’s, multiple sclerosis and stroke (PMSS).

“Through its Artificial Intelligence lab, UNic will greatly contribute to Alameda’s artificial intelligence, machine learning and natural language processing elements. More specifically, one of the major innovations that we will develop is a conversational agent (Chat-bot) that will interact with patients and collect information in a non-intrusive way”, said Ioannis Katakis, project coordinator for UNic. Dr. Katakis is an Associate Professor at the University of Nicosia, Computer Science Department, and co-founder and co-director of the Artificial Intelligence lab.

Alameda acknowledges that the care of patients with brain disorders is complex and that manifestations of certain diseases could worsen over time and seriously impair the quality of life of patients and their caregivers: regular rehabilitation treatment assessments are essential to ensure that medical interventions are impactful and relapse incidents can be foreseen.

The project’s innovations will take advantage of new machine learning models, built upon lifestyle retrospective data as well as new streams of patient data that involve the monitoring of everyday activities, such as sleep behaviour and emotional status. The success of such applications will provide clinicians with the opportunity to modify interventions based on personalised data recordings, that could include both pharmacological and non-pharmacological therapeutic options, such as exercise regimens.

The European collaborative project kicked off in January 2021 and will run for 36 months. It receives funding  of €6 million from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme.