Location
Australia
The main uses of gold include jewellery, coinage, investment, dentistry, medicine, mobile phones, computers and laptops. Since 2019, Evolution has been making a difference by supporting innovative uses of gold for medical research. We committed $1 million over three years to support the University of Queensland’s Australian Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology to develop the Immunostorm chip – a novel diagnostic device with gold nanoparticles that tests blood to rapidly detect cancer cells in the human body. This chip has the potential to enable early diagnosis for all cancer types and improve survival rates.
The research scope was expanded following the emergence of COVID-19, leveraging the gold nanoparticle technology in the Immuno-Storm to detect warning signs of cytokine storms, and uncontrolled release of cytokines which can result in hyperinflammation and tissue damage in some cancer and COVID-19 patients.
The outcomes of this Shared Value Project have exceeded expectations and demonstrated further applicability and accessibility of gold-based products in medicine in diagnosing long-term impacts of these chronic diseases, as well as applicability in the areas of:
- Psychology
- Auto-immune diseases
- Neurology
- Ageing
Evolution and UQ look forward to strengthening our relationship in the hope of pursuing successes that have long-lasting and transformative benefits to local communities.

