Enhancing cartilage self-repair using cell-free IPN biopolymer hydrogels (GELHOME 2)

Background

Acute cartilage defects are a significant source of suffering and disability, leading to productivity loss and significant healthcare costs. Aging population and increase in physical activity at all ages are amplifying the societal impact of cartilage defects, which in the long-term contribute to osteoarthritis onset. Materials trying to match cartilage resilience are usually unsuitable for cell invasion, new tissue formation and adhesion to native tissue, which is the first requirement for lateral integration.

Double-network hydrogels are specialized interpenetrating polymeric networks with outstanding strength and toughness. Double networks were initially developed from non-biodegradable materials unsuitable for long-term implantation. Recent advances have demonstrated how the same design paradigm can be employed to fabricate biopolymer-based tough double network hydrogels (Figure).

In this project, we are engineering combinations of biopolymers for obtaining hydrogels with i) high resilience; ii) high strength to withstand repeated mechanical load; iii) adhesion to cartilage under physiological conditions; iv) cytocompatibility and capability of being invaded by cells from underlying bone marrow and/or adjacent cartilage; v) patentability and overall design prone to clinical translation and development into a product

Publication

Gowda AHJ, Bu Y, Kudina O, Kanala VK, Bohara RA, Eglin D, Pandit A. Design of tunable gelatin-dopamine based bioadhesives. Int J Biol Macromol. 2020;epub Jul 25

Tognato R, Armiento AR, Bonfrate V, Levato R, Malda J, Alini M, Eglin D, Giancane G, Serra T. A Stimuli-Responsive Nanocomposite for 3D Anisotropic Cell-Guidance and Magnetic Soft Robotics, Adv Funct Mater 29(9) (2019) 10.

Safari F, Fani N, Eglin D, Alini M, Stoddart MJ, Eslaminejad MB. Human Umbilical Cord-derived Scaffolds for Cartilage Tissue Engineering, J Biomed Mater Res A 107(8) (2019) 1793-1802.

Yamamoto T, Randriantsilefisoa R, Sprecher CM, D’Este M. Fabrication of Collagen-Hyaluronic Acid Cryogels by Directional Freezing Mimicking Cartilage Arcade-like Structure.
Biomolecules. 2022;12(12):1809. https://doi.org/10.3390/biom12121809
Presentation

Eglin D. Fabrication of stimuli responsive hydrogel microenvironments for cell manipulation TERMIS EU, Rhodos, 2019, p. 605 / 66 (eCM coll).

D'Este M. From bench science to clinical translation: patents in biomaterials., ESB European Society for Biomaterials ESBioMat, Dresden, 2019.

D'Este M. Towards Clinical Translation: Patents and Intellectual Property in Biomaterials Science. Stem Cell Biology & Technology Royan International Twin Congress. Reproductive Biomedicine & Stem Cells, Tehran. Teheran, 2019.
Partner

Ferguson S (Prof), ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland