Skip to main content
Go to the home page of the European Commission (opens in new window)
English English
CORDIS - EU research results
CORDIS

ADvanced nanocomposite MAterIals fOr in situ treatment and ultRAsound-mediated management of osteoarthritis

Project description

Slowing down the effects of osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis (OA), a joint disease involving the degeneration of joint cartilage and underlying bone, is the most common cause of pain and disability in middle-aged people and the elderly. The goal of the EU-funded ADMAIORA project is to help people with OA lead a healthy and active lifestyle by slowing down or preventing the degeneration process. The consortium is developing biosynthetic hydrogels with piezoelectric nanoparticles responsive to remote wireless ultrasound stimulation. The hydrogels will contain stem cells with anti-inflammatory and regenerative properties, and they will be delivered in situ using an innovative handheld 3D bioprinter. Custom-designed ultrasound probes will enable monitoring of the joint status and stimulation of the implanted piezoelectric biomaterial, to enhance cartilage regeneration.

Objective

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a major burden that affects ~ 40 million of EU citizens, with enormous direct and indirect costs for the European healthcare systems, quantified in ~ 50.4 billion euros per year. This disease involves the degeneration of cartilage and other joint structures and is one of the most common causes of pain and disability in middle-aged and elderly people. ADMAIORA aims in the long-term at increasing the healthy and active lifespan of people affected by OA, by considerably slowing down or even stopping the degeneration process, thus delaying or avoiding surgical interventions for total joint replacement. Within the project time-frame the target is to achieve a 60% reduction of degeneration in OA animal models treated with the ADMAIORA technologies, with respect to control (untreated) ones, after 4 weeks, and a 90% reduction after 3 months. To achieve this ambitious objective the Consortium will evolve and merge technologies that already showed a high potential as experimental proof of concepts (TRL = 3) and will bring them at a preclinical level (TRL = 5). The ADMAIORA Consortium will develop biosynthetic hydrogels embedded with carbon-based nanomaterials, conferring higher mechanical and lubrication properties, and piezoelectric nanoparticles enabling responsivity to remote wireless ultrasound waves. Stem cells derived from autologous adipose tissue, which already demonstrated anti-inflammatory and regenerative properties, will be entrapped in the hydrogels. Materials and cells will be delivered in situ through an innovative handheld 3D bioprinter, embedded in an arthroscopic tool. A custom brace will be designed and equipped with ultrasound probes for both monitoring the joint status and stimulating the implanted piezoelectric nanobiomaterial. A dedicated App will allow a direct connection between patient and physician in an Internet of Things framework. Overall, ADMAIORA will target a ground-breaking paradigm that may revolutionize OA treatment.

Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)

CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.

You need to log in or register to use this function

Keywords

Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)

Programme(s)

Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.

Topic(s)

Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.

Funding Scheme

Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.

RIA - Research and Innovation action

See all projects funded under this funding scheme

Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

(opens in new window) H2020-NMBP-TR-IND-2018-2020

See all projects funded under this call

Coordinator

SCUOLA SUPERIORE DI STUDI UNIVERSITARI E DI PERFEZIONAMENTO S ANNA
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 1 366 042,88
Address
PIAZZA MARTIRI DELLA LIBERTA 33
56127 Pisa
Italy

See on map

Region
Centro (IT) Toscana Pisa
Activity type
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
Links
Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

€ 1 366 042,88

Participants (7)

My booklet 0 0