Lead Inventor:
Helen H. Lu, Ph.D.
Tech Ventures Reference: IRs 1503, 2128, 2169, 2230, 2230-a, 2397, 2414, 2635, & M09-027
Problem or Unmet Need:
Damage and injury to soft tissues (e.g. ligaments, tendons, and cartilage) and to the interfaces between soft tissue and bone are a major source of pain and disability. Conditions which cause or are the result of these orthopaedic events include osteoarthritis, ACL tears, and rotator cuff injury. Biological fixation that promotes the regeneration of the native interface on soft tissue-based grafts or allograft poses a major clinical challenge for expediting reconstruction graft healing and achieving long term functionality of joint motion and stabilization.
Details of the Invention:
This technology is a set of novel materials and strategies for orthopaedic engineering of the soft tissue-to-bone interface. Methods for constructing scaffold systems which are multiphasic, three-dimensional, biodegradable, and biomimetic are presented for biological fixation and integrative repair. These systems can include the use of a variety of materials (e.g. polymers and ceramics) and cell types, nanoscale elements (e.g. nanofiber mesh), and growth factors (e.g. from platelet-rich plasma) for tuning mechanical, structural, chemical and biological properties.
Applications:
Treatment and repair of musculoskeletal tissue:
• Osteoarthritis
• ACL injury
• Rotator cuff injury
Advantages:
• Biodegradable
• Biomimetic
• Flexibility in configuration of scaffold systems allows for high tunability
• Enhancement of graft incorporation possible with growth factors, chemotherapeutic agents, analgesics, anti-infectives
Patent Status: Patent Pending (
WO/2009/038808,
WO/2008/070186,
WO/2008/154035,
WO/2008/100534,
US20060067969A1)
Licensing Status: Available for Licensing and Sponsored Research Support
Publications: Lu et al., Compositional effects on the formation of a calcium phosphate layer and the response of osteoblast-like cells on polymer-bioactive glass composites,
Biomaterials Volume 26, Issue 32, Pages 6323-6334, November 2005.
Moffat KL, Wang IE, Rodeo SA and Lu HH; "Orthopaedic interface tissue engineering for the biological fixation of soft tissue grafts",
Clinics in Sports Medicine, 28(1):157-176, 2009.
Moffat KL, Sun WA, Pena PE, Chahine NO, Doty SB, Ateshian GA, Hung CT, and Lu HH; "Characterization of the structure-function relationship at the ligament-to-bone interface",
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 105(23): 7947-7952, 2008.