Tissue Regenix, a medical devices spin-out of Leeds University, will be given an opportunity to have its technology presented at the Royal Society in London as part of the sixth Biennial Heart Valve and Tissue Engineering Meeting.
Franscisco da Costa, long-time collaborator with the spin-out, cardiac surgeon and professor at Pontifical University of Parana in Brazil, has been studying the company’s dCell technology and will talk about his findings at the meeting. His study suggests that Tissue Regenix’s technology is more effective than current technologies.
Da Costa’s study takes into account data from more than 160 patients with implants, collected between 2005 and 2013 and with ongoing patient monitoring. Among other things, he has so far concluded that none of the patients have needed additional surgery following the dCell implant and particularly good results in younger patients. The technology has also proven to prevent calcification and there are first indication that currently used cryopreservation may not be necessary.
The technology works by decellularising donor heart valves, which produces an inert scaffold. That scaffold is implanted and can then be populated by the patient’s own cells. This means that the implant will more easily be assimilated into the patient’s body, significantly reducing the odds of rejection and of an infection.
Antony Odell, chief executive at Tissue Regenix, said: “We are excited to see continued recognition for the effectiveness of the dCell heart valve technology, especially at this prestigious Royal Society Biennial Heart Valve and Tissue Engineering Meeting in London. Professor da Costa has collaborated with Tissue Regenix for more than eight years to develop new, regenerative medicine treatments for patients with heart disease, and the data based on his studies show strong results and great promise for the dCell heart valve technology, targeted at the global tissue heart valve market which is worth in excess of $1bn a year.”
