Objective This project aims to provide new tissue engineering technologies for therapeutic treatments, which will ultimately have major social impact by contributing to the challenge of providing lifelong health for our society at an affordable cost. The main aim is the development of advanced functional materials that are needed for improved quality of life of thousands of patients suffering from cartilage or bone tissue loss or malfunctioning. The improved therapy suggested herein will result in a decreased morbidity and mortality of patients with reduction of the overall costs in EU healthcare. A major objective is the development of tissue engineering (TE) products that can be used for bone TE, cartilage TE or for an osteochondral TE strategy. Natural origin scaffolds mainly based on algae & chatoyant will be used for bone andcartilage. Cewrmaic bi-physic calcium phosphates scaffolds will be obtain from mineralised red algae. For theosteochondral approach, specific technologies will be developed to produce complex bi-material (polymer/ceramic) constructs. An all range of adequate processing techniques to obtained suitable scaffolds will be developed. One of the main innovations will be the development and use of specific software packages for designing patient specific scaffolds that will be combined with the production of the scaffolds by means of 3D plotting methodologies. Other techniques will include melt based processing and solvent-based techniques. The scaffolds will also be loaded with arrange of growth factors including several bone-morph genetic proteins other GF in the TGF- family. Primary cells and progenitor cells obtained from animals and later on from human patients will be used to develop the tissue-engineered products. Cell culturing methodologies will be optimised and specific ways of controlling the cultures evolution into the desired phenotypes will be developed. In-vivo functionality assessment experiments will also be carried out. Fields of science natural sciencescomputer and information sciencessoftwarenatural sciencesbiological sciencesmicrobiologyphycologymedical and health sciencesmedical biotechnologytissue engineeringnatural scienceschemical sciencespolymer sciencesmedical and health sciencesmedical biotechnologyimplantsartificial bone Programme(s) FP6-NMP - Nanotechnologies and nanosciences, knowledge-based multifunctional materials and new production processes and devices: thematic priority 3 under the 'Focusing and integrating community research' of the 'Integrating and strengthening the European Research Area' specific programme 2002-2006. Topic(s) NMP-1 - Nanotechnologies and Nanosciences Call for proposal FP6-2002-NMP-1 See other projects for this call Funding Scheme STREP - Specific Targeted Research Project Coordinator UNIVERSIDADE DO MINHO EU contribution No data Address The Rectory, Largo do Paco BRAGA Portugal See on map Total cost No data Participants (6) Sort alphabetically Sort by EU Contribution Expand all Collapse all ENVISIONTEC GMBH Germany EU contribution No data Address Elbestrasse 10 MARL See on map Total cost No data JOHANNES GUTENBERG UNIVERSITAET MAINZ Germany EU contribution No data Address Saarstrasse 21 MAINZ See on map Total cost No data LUDWIG BOLTZMANN GESELLSCHAFT Austria EU contribution No data Address Operngasse 6, 5. Stock WIEN See on map Total cost No data MATERIALISE NV Belgium EU contribution No data Address Technologielaan 15 LEUVEN See on map Total cost No data QUEEN'S UNIVERSITY BELFAST United Kingdom EU contribution No data Address University Road BELFAST See on map Total cost No data ROTES KREUZ LANDESVERBAND OBEROESTERREICH Austria EU contribution No data Address Koernerstrasse 28 LINZ See on map Total cost No data
