Launch of ARTEMIs initiative to study fatty liver disease and its cardiovascular complications using virtual twins

ARTEMIs (AcceleRating the Translation of virtual twins towards a pErsonalized Management of fatty lIver patientS) was launched on the 1st of January with the aim of making a major leap forward in the management of metabolic associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD). The leading cause of chronic liver disease (CLD) in Europe surpassing viral hepatitis and alcohol-related causes.

ARTEMIs’ promising approach, in which Vall d’Hebron Research Institute (VHIR) participates, aims to control this fast-growing metabolic syndrome and its cardiovascular complications by leveraging advanced liver and heart Virtual Twins. For this purpose, the project will co-design, develop, and evaluate a clinical decision support system (CDSS) for application in the clinical management of MAFLD patients. The following groups will participate: Molecular Medical Imaging, Liver Diseases, Diabetes and Metabolism, Cardiovascular Disease, Clinical Biochemistry, Drug Delivery and Therapy.

To advance knowledge in this field, the European Union (EU), through the Horizon Europe (HE) programme, will invest 10 million euros in ARTEMIs over the next 4 years. Thanks to this EUfunded project, a powerful tool to help decision-making towards improved patient management strategies, personalized diagnostics, and innovative therapeutic strategies will be developed. ARTEMIs has the ambition to enable early disease detection, prediction of disease progression, and effective disease management. This will ultimately contribute to promoting Real-World Data and AI for secure and ethical decision-making in healthcare in alignment with some of the most ambitious EU goals in terms of healthcare digitalization in the coming years.

Vall d'Hebron will participate in the various studies that will be developed in the project, leading the coordination of the various hospitals of the consortium and playing a relevant role in decision making. It will also participate directly in the development of digital tools based on artificial intelligence for the digitization and personalization of these virtual twins.

"This project, which involves researchers from various departments of the hospital, is a great opportunity for the generation of a digital tool that aims to revolutionise the medicine of the future by generating digital twins of patients. This tool is a multidisciplinary effort with professionals from different backgrounds and aims to facilitate the diagnosis and management of patients with MALFD and its possible cardiovascular consequences in a personalised way in the future, which will greatly benefit patients suffering from this prevalent disease", highlights Dr. Raul Herance, head of the Molecular Medical Imaging group at VHIR.

A multidisciplinary effort for a more personalised management of MAFLD

The project, which held its first meeting on February 7th, in Paris at Parisanté Campus, brings together a unique combination of expertise to address the complexities of consolidating existing computational models to deliver ‘virtual twins’ embedded in a CDSS. "ARTEMIs embodies a collaborative effort that transcends boundaries. February 7 marks the beginning of a journey that will undoubtedly redefine MAFLD patient care and contribute significantly to the EU goals”, stated Mario Aznar, ARTEMIs' Project Coordinator.

ARTEMIs Consortium Partners

22 European and non-European internationally recognised institutions from 9 countries will join forces to revolutionize the management of MAFLD, including VHIR and AP-HP (Henri Mondor, Paul Brousse, and Pitié Salpêtrière Hospitals), Betthera, Bournemouth University, Charité, Cliniques Universitaires Saint-Luc, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), European Liver Patients' Association (ELPA), Heidelberg University Hospital, Imperial College Healthcare (NHS trust), National Institute for Research in Digital Science and Technology (INRIA), Institute of Cardiometabolism and Nutrition (ICAN), Jena University Hospital, La Fe Health Research Institute, Leipzig University, Matical, Medical University of Vienna, Medexprim, Sapienza University of Rome, Sant'Andrea University Hospital, Sheba Medical Center.

ARTEMIs is funded by Horizon Europe - HORIZON-HLTH-2023-TOOL-05-03: “Integrated multi-scale computation models of patient patho-physiology ("virtual twins") for personalised disease management”.