Synthetic Biology: Rational Pathway Design for Regenerative Medicine

Digital health: trends, opportunities and challenges in medical devices, pharma and bio-technology

Digital health interventions refer to the use of digital technology and connected devices to improve health outcomes and healthcare delivery. This includes telemedicine, electronic health records, wearable devices, mobile health applications, and other forms of digital health technology. To this end, several research and developmental activities in various fields are gaining momentum. For instance, in the medical devices sector, several smart biomedical materials and medical devices that are digitally enabled are rapidly being developed and introduced into clinical settings. In the pharma and allied sectors, digital health-focused technologies are widely being used through various stages of drug development, viz. computer-aided drug design, computational modeling for predictive toxicology, and big data analytics for clinical trial management. In the biotechnology and bioengineering fields, investigations are rapidly growing focus on digital health, such as omics biology, synthetic biology, systems biology, big data and personalized medicine. Though digital health-focused innovations are expanding the horizons of health in diverse ways, here the development in the fields of medical devices, pharmaceutical technologies and biotech sectors, with emphasis on trends, opportunities and challenges are reviewed. A perspective on the use of digital health in the Indian context is also included.

Hard Tissue Augmentation of Aged Bone by Means of a Tin-Free PLLA-PCL Co-Polymer Exhibiting in vivo Anergy and Long-Term Structural Stability

BACKGROUND

Due to aging, tissue regeneration gradually declines. Contemporary strategies to promote tissue-specific regeneration, in particular in elderly patients, often include synthetic material apt for implantation primarily aiming at upholding body functions and regaining appropriate anatomical and functional integrity.

OBJECTIVE

Biomaterials suitable for complex reconstruction surgical procedures have to exert high physicochemical stability and biocompatibility.

METHOD

A polymer made of poly-L-lactic acid and poly-ε-caprolactone was synthesized by means of a novel tin-free catalytic process. The material was tested in a bioreactor-assisted perfusion culture and implanted in a sheep model for lateral augmentation of the mandible. Histological and volumetric evaluation was performed 3 and 6 months post-implantation.

RESULTS

After synthesis the material could be further refined by cryogrinding and sintering, thus yielding differently porous scaffolds that exhibited a firm and stable appearance. In perfusion culture, no disintegration was observed for extended periods of up to 7 weeks, while mesenchymal stromal cells readily attached to the material, steadily proliferated, and deposited extracellular calcium. The material was tested in vivo together with autologous bone marrow-derived stromal cells. Up to 6 months post-implantation, the material hardly changed in shape with composition also refraining from foreign body reactions.

CONCLUSION

Given the long-term shape stability in vivo, featuring imperceptible degradation and little scarring as well as exerting good compatibility to cells and surrounding tissues, this novel biomaterial is suitable as a space filler in large anatomical defects.