| EPSRC Reference: |
EP/N03127X/1 |
| Title: |
Engineering self-assembling silk hydrogels for the delivery of stem cells |
| Principal Investigator: |
Seib, Dr P |
| Other Investigators: |
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| Department: |
Inst of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sci |
| Organisation: |
University of Strathclyde |
| Scheme: |
First Grant - Revised 2009 |
| Starts: |
13 October 2016 |
Ends: |
27 January 2019 |
Value (£): |
98,849
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| EPSRC Research Topic Classifications: |
| Biomaterials |
Materials Characterisation |
| Tissue Engineering |
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Summary on Grant Application Form |
Context of the research: Stroke is the number one cause of disability in the UK, with an estimated 150,000 new cases annually. Following the acute onset of stroke, lack of oxygen leads to massive neuronal cell death within minutes and progressive brain damage over the following hours and days. A therapeutic intervention that would retard or even halt stroke progression would benefit stroke survivors. In this context, stem cell-based therapies are currently being assessed in patients. However, delivering those cells safely and effectively to the area in the brain where they are needed most is challenging. There is the need to develop delivery systems that can place, retain, support and protect applied stem cells to maximise their therapeutic potential.
Aims and objectives: Ensuring that a delivery system can fulfil all these needs is not trivial and requires careful selection of the most suitable strategy. The overall aim is to develop a biopolymer solution that can be loaded with stem cells and injected into the stroked brain, which could subsequently transition into a gel that retains, supports and protects the applied stem cell load at the target site. The programme's two main objectives include: 1. Develop protocols that permit the biopolymer's triggered transition from a solution to a gel and to underpin this by robust sample characterisation. 2. Examine the biopolymer's ability to support and protect applied stem cells.
Potential applications and benefits: Achieving the vision of this proposal will have significant potential to contribute to the nation's health and wellbeing through the development of new, better and affordable stem cell delivery systems-a need that is currently unmet. Unlocking this potential through the provision of better delivery technologies has significant promise for substantial economic impact in the UK, from which a range of sectors and their key role in the economy will benefit, e.g. UK biotechnology industry research and development spending is approximately 780 million p.a. with around 1,000 manufacturers revenues of 8 billion p.a. and projected growth of 4.4% p.a.
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Key Findings |
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This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk
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Potential use in non-academic contexts |
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This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk
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Impacts |
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| Description |
This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk |
| Summary |
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| Date Materialised |
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Sectors submitted by the Researcher |
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This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk
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| Project URL: |
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| Further Information: |
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| Organisation Website: |
http://www.strath.ac.uk |