Descripción del proyecto
Innovadora biotinta para la impresión tridimensional de modelos cruciales de médula ósea
Las enfermedades de la médula ósea afectan a una parte considerable de la población, lo cual las convierte en un ámbito complejo tanto para el desarrollo de nuevos medicamentos como para la investigación. El equipo del proyecto SILKink, financiado por el Consejo Europeo de Innovación, abordará este reto creando una innovadora biotinta que utiliza la seda como material de base. Esta biotinta puede utilizarse para la impresión tridimensional de modelos muy precisos de tejido de médula ósea de distintos tamaños y formas, o para simular células madre y progenitoras hematopoyéticas. Así, este avance podría mejorar enormemente la investigación médica y facilitar la creación de fármacos a medida y tratamientos médicos personalizados para cada paciente.
Objetivo
Aim: The SILKink project aims to develop a breakthrough biocompatible hydrogel, i.e. a bioink, to 3D print bone marrow tissue models that can be used for robust culture of human stem cells. The use of silk as the basis for novel bioinks (SILKink) helps to recreate tailored bone marrow-like microenvironments that will enable new applications in drug development and personalized medicine for bone marrow diseases. Here, we aim to optimize and validate SILKink, further define the business opportunity, and found an investment-ready spin-off company to commercialize SILKink.
Unmet need: Bone marrow stem cells are fragile and require highly specific surroundings to survive and differentiate, therefore the presence of a soft tissue environment mimicking the human bone marrow is critical for reproducible culturing of these cells. There is a large unmet need for reproducible solutions that mimic the soft tissue of the bone marrow to allow advancements in drug development and personalized medicine approaches for bone marrow diseases.
Solution: We will develop SILKink: a revolutionary bioink that is uniquely based on silk to closely mimic the 3D soft tissue environment of the bone marrow. SILKink will provide a matrix that supports all bone marrow cells including hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells and allows to 3D print ex vivo bone marrow stem cell models in the shape or volume desired.
Consortium: University of Pavia (UNIPV) and partner CELLINK have developed the SILKink prototype during FET Open project SilkFUSION and co-own the background IP. Partner Catalyze-Group Venture Building Team (CAT) will bring commercial expertise to develop an optimal market access strategy for SILKink. UNIPV will be responsible for SILKink optimization, manufacturing, and validation. CELLINK will be involved in product optimization and responsible for product development. CAT will assist UNIPV with founding a spin-off company to commercialize SILKink and making it investment-ready.
Palabras clave
Programa(s)
- HORIZON.3.1 - The European Innovation Council (EIC) Main Programme
Convocatoria de propuestas
HORIZON-EIC-2022-TRANSITION-01
Consulte otros proyectos de esta convocatoriaRégimen de financiación
HORIZON-EIC - HORIZON EIC GrantsCoordinador
27100 Pavia
Italia