A UK company has developed a new technology that could streamline in vitro research and hold the key to dramatic advancements in the field of regenerative medicine.
Leading UK nanobiotechnology company, Orla Protein Technologies, has developed a unique biosurface technology which could offer a more efficient and cost effective solution for biomedical research, whilst highlighting exciting possibilities for the future of biomedical implants and ‘nanomedicine’.
Featured in a recent journal article by Newcastle University PhD student Elizabeth Mitchell and Dr Mark Birch of the university’s Musculoskeletal Research Group, Orla’s technology offers a very real alternative to current in vitro testing techniques, including those used for stem cell research.
Where current techniques see researchers adding proteins to a liquid solution to mimic conditions and behaviours inside the body, Orla’s technology works by tethering proteins to a specially engineered surface made of glass or gold, designed to more closely resemble the body’s internal environment.
“The technology works to immobilise the proteins on a surface, encouraging them to ‘self-assemble’ or distribute evenly with uniform thickness – similar to dropping a spot of oil into water, says Dale Athey, Chief Executive at Orla.
“This offers significant advantages to researchers, helping to cut costs by as much as 50per cent, as the amount of proteins needed to conduct each experiment is noticeably reduced, whilst the speed and accuracy of results is notably increased.”
As outlined in the article, published earlier this year in the BMC Journal, this technology could also hold the key for groundbreaking developments in regenerative medicines such as the way that biomedical implants, like hip replacements are accepted by the body.
Elizabeth Mitchell, author of the journal article, said: “Research has shown that in the long term this technology could see breakthroughs in the way that biomedical implants are integrated into the body.
“One of the problems in implanting prosthetic joints is that there is a lack of integration between the bone and the artificial joint. Using Orla’s technology we were able to create a surface which potentiates the activity of a peptide to initiate and actively support bone formation. In the future this could be used in patients to reduce aseptic loosening and the need for secondary surgery.”
Professor Jeremy Lakey, Scientific Director of Orla and an academic at Newcastle University added: “This method allows us to incorporate a huge range of bioactive molecules into new materials for drug delivery and targetting, where nanoscale particles and molecules are used to target a drug to the areas in the body where it will do most good.”
Orla Protein Technologies Ltd
