Summary:
UCLA researchers in the Departments of Urology and Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering have developed biomimetic, elastic biomaterial for use in urinary tract reconstruction.
Background:
Lower urinary tract (LUT) reconstructions have a high failure rate leading to complications including urinary tract infections and leakage. There is no current FDA-approved biologic to replace bladder or urethral tissues and FDA-approved alternatives suffer from issues such as mismatched biology, mechanics, and structure of the native tissue. It is essential that mechanical properties of the replacement tissue are consistent with native tissue as mismatches qualities, such as elasticity and tensile properties, can lead to a host of postoperative complications. There is a demonstrated need for a biomaterial which will enhance tissue regeneration and restore early function which can replicate native tissue.
Innovation:
UCLA researchers co-led by Dr. Renea Sturm and Dr Nasim Annabi have developed a novel, highly elastic biomaterial for use in urinary tract reconstruction. This material has tunable mechanical and structural properties, enabling use in not only the urinary tract but also other tissues in the body including pulmonary and cardiovascular tissues. The specific microenvironment can be tuned by seeding various cell lines in the material. The material can also be sutured, biodegrades into non-toxic byproducts, and has demonstrated great biocompatibility in in vitro investigations.
Potential Applications:
• Lower urinary tract reconstruction
• Complex bladder and urethral repairs
• Cardiovascular, pulmonary, or gastrointestinal future applications
Advantages:
• non-harmful to cells
• Can be seeded or unseeded
• Tunable physical properties
• Highly elastic
• Biomimetic
• Suturable
• Non-immunogenic
Development-To-Date:
Successful production of material as well as in vitro experiments
Related Papers:
Engineering a naturally-derived adhesive and conductive cardiopatch. Biomaterials, 2019 Jul:207:89-101. doi: 10.1016/j.biomaterials.2019.03.015. Epub 2019 Mar 21.
Reference:
UCLA Case No. 2024-060
Lead Inventors:
Dr. Renea Sturm, Nasim Annabi