A pre-clinical model is now under way and the team intend to start a human clinical trial in a year's time
Recognising that there was an unmet clinical need in repairing torn meniscal cartilage, Hollander and the team reasoned "that if we could get our cell bandage into the tear and suture up around it, that would promote healing and we wouldn't have to cut out the damaged tissue". They first filed a patent and then, with some early stage funding from the University, explored the idea of meniscal repair in vitro. Despite the results looking very promising, trying to raise money for the next stage took an inordinate amount of time. At last it all came together with a mixture of funds: a Wellcome Trust University Translation Award, designed to assist universities advance ideas with commercial promise in the biomedical area; a grant from the Research Council Technology Strategy Board, intended to support the commercialisation of research; and private funding from investors. In December 2007, Azellon was registered with Companies House.
A pre-clinical model is now under way and the team intend to start a human clinical trial in a year's time. Hollander, now Azellon's Scientific Director, jokes, "So at the moment we are a spin-out company that has no product and nothing to sell, but if the clinical trial goes well then value will be added very quickly". Indeed it will. And he doesn't intend to stop there: tendon, ligament and possibly muscle repairs are already being considered, as well as non-union bone fractures which are not healing, a very serious issue that can lead to loss of the limb. The future looks very bright, both for Azellon and the long-suffering patients these exciting new techniques will be able to treat.
http://www.bris.ac.uk/
http://www.news-medical.net/?id=45964
Recognising that there was an unmet clinical need in repairing torn meniscal cartilage, Hollander and the team reasoned "that if we could get our cell bandage into the tear and suture up around it, that would promote healing and we wouldn't have to cut out the damaged tissue". They first filed a patent and then, with some early stage funding from the University, explored the idea of meniscal repair in vitro. Despite the results looking very promising, trying to raise money for the next stage took an inordinate amount of time. At last it all came together with a mixture of funds: a Wellcome Trust University Translation Award, designed to assist universities advance ideas with commercial promise in the biomedical area; a grant from the Research Council Technology Strategy Board, intended to support the commercialisation of research; and private funding from investors. In December 2007, Azellon was registered with Companies House.
A pre-clinical model is now under way and the team intend to start a human clinical trial in a year's time. Hollander, now Azellon's Scientific Director, jokes, "So at the moment we are a spin-out company that has no product and nothing to sell, but if the clinical trial goes well then value will be added very quickly". Indeed it will. And he doesn't intend to stop there: tendon, ligament and possibly muscle repairs are already being considered, as well as non-union bone fractures which are not healing, a very serious issue that can lead to loss of the limb. The future looks very bright, both for Azellon and the long-suffering patients these exciting new techniques will be able to treat.
http://www.bris.ac.uk/
http://www.news-medical.net/?id=45964