How can the nose help your knee – learn more about the science behind N-TEC and the generation of your personalized graft.
Cell-based therapies using cartilage cells (i.e., chondrocytes) from a healthy area of the knee joint are already available as routine treatments but exhibit several drawbacks. The few cell-based therapies actually on the market have not shown superiority of clinical efficacy as compared to standard techniques
Innovations in Nose to Knee:
The engineered nasal cartilage graft (N-TEC) is combining two innovations to overcome the current drawbacks:
A small biopsy (6 mm of diameter) of nasal cartilage is harvested from the septum of the patient, the tissue is treated with an enzymatic digestion solution that break the extracellular matrix and liberate the cells. The isolated chondrocytes are multiplied in a nutrient solution for two weeks and then loaded into a biodegradable collagen scaffold and cultured for additional two weeks with a new solution allowing them to grow and build up a cartilage like tissue. After a total of 4 weeks, the cartilage graft is ready and provided to the surgeons. In the operating theatre, the graft is shaped and sized to fit the cartilage defect to be repaired. After removing the damaged cartilage, the manufactured graft is implanted in the knee cartilage defect of the patients.
All cell culture steps are performed in a highly controlled and sterile laboratory called clean room by trained and expertly qualified personal according to national and international regulations for Advanced Therapy Medicinal Products.
The Lancet
Science
Adult human neural crest–derived cells for articular cartilage repair
LiebertPub
Regenerative Potential of Tissue-Engineered Nasal Chondrocytes in Goat Articular Cartilage Defects
Social Media