Alternative cartilage tissue engineering strategies; smart scaffolds and perfusion bioreactors

Status: Complete
Year: 2009
Grant Type: Major Project Grant

Long-term cartilage damage often leads to osteoarthritis (OA), a condition affecting over half a million New Zealanders in 2005, equating to 8.3% of the population (or around 1 in 12 Cantabrians). OA is the most predominant form of arthritis, particularly in the proportion of the population >55 years of age, and yet this age group are now living longer and more active lives. The goal in cartilage tissue engineering is to repair or regenerate damaged articular cartilage by combining cells, biomaterial scaffolds and/or growth factors, with the aim to introduce reparative cells and/or stimulate host cells to re-establish the developmental stages of tissue growth.

Researcher // Dr Tim Woodfield – University of Otago

Associate Professor Woodfield leads the Christchurch Regenerative Medicine and Tissue Engineering (CReaTE) Group which is associated with the University of Otago’s Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and its Centre for Bioengineering & Nanomedicine. The Department’s location at the Christchurch hospital campus helps him maintain strong connections with the city’s medical and surgical staff, and the Centre draws upon talent across several disciplines based out of the University’s Dunedin, Christchurch, and Wellington locations in New Zealand.

More About Dr Tim Woodfield

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