Prevention of hypertrophy in chondrocytes used for cartilage replacement
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An intact articular cartilage surface is essential for normal joint function. Loss of this tissue through degradation of the type II collagen and proteoglycan components of its extracellular matrix is a well-described feature of osteoarthritis (OA). In adults there is little or no capacity for self-repair of eroded articular cartilage. One potential treatment method involves the creation of three-dimensional cartilage implants from bone marrow stem cells. When stem cells extracted from bone marrow are differentiated to form chondrocytes they tend to move from the pre-hypertrophic chondrocytes required to form cartilage into hypertrophic chondrocytes required to form bone. This process can be reduced or delayed by the addition of PTHrP (Parathyroid hormone related protein or peptide), enabling three-dimensional cartilage constructs suitable for OA patients to be created. |
An arthritic hip joint showing loss of cartilage and exposure of the underlying bone. |
Key Benefits
- Sufficient three-dimensional cartilage material can be created to enable successful repair of OA cartilage lesions
- Reduced risk of calcification of the implanted neo-cartilage.
Applications
Use in differentiating bone marrow stem cells into chondrocytes and use of these derived cells to produce three-dimensional tissue engineered cartilage
IP status
US patent application (11/994758) currently awaiting examination
This technology is available as an Easy Access exclusive licence deal to companies and individuals.
Find out more
For more information on this technology, please contact Sue Sundstrom (Sue.Sundstrom@bris.ac.uk) or call +44 (0)117 331 7003