PFI-TT: Development of Highly Adhesive Hydrogel for Cornea Tissue Regeneration

这一创新技术转化伙伴关系(PFI-TT)项目的更广泛影响/商业潜力是一种用于角膜修复和移植的新型生物兼容、抗菌和透明粘合剂，将显著降低与当前护理标准相关的延长和二次治疗的成本。在美国每年240万例眼外伤中，60万例是开放性眼球角膜裂伤，导致5万人失明。全世界有1800万例这样的失明病例。全国每年的角膜移植市场为4万例，全球估计为18.5万例。拟议的产品有望绕过目前手术方法的局限性，以及角膜修复的术后成本和护理。这将为整个生态系统节省成本，如患者、保险公司(包括联邦医疗保险)和医院。美国和世界市场的商业化潜力可能会在研发、营销和制造方面创造就业机会。这一项目工作的目标是让代表人数不足的背景的学生、妇女、少数群体和残疾人参与的更多技术教学和推广机会。该项目提出了一种用于角膜修复和移植的生物相容性和抗菌生物粘合剂。目前的护理标准包括缝合和氰基丙烯酸酯胶水，这类胶水存在与散光、继发性感染、细胞毒性和视网膜病变相关的额外治疗费用。这种拟议的产品具有生物兼容性、高粘附性、灵活性和高强度，有望缓解这些次要问题。这种粘合剂将快速整合角膜细胞，促进伤口愈合，减少继发感染的机会，并减少相关的增量住院和药物成本。材料的透明性将使视力快速恢复。该材料具有很强的粘附性和抗菌性，防止意外拆卸，并提供出色的稳定性和高保留率。该项目的目标将通过三项主要任务来实现。在第一项任务中，该团队将系统地探索实验条件对生物黏附特性的影响，如组织黏附、生物兼容性、柔韧性、透明度和抗菌特性。在第二项任务中，生物粘附剂的降解和保留将通过研究应用于角膜泪液时的变化来确定。在第三项任务中，将通过研究其对角膜细胞的影响以及随着时间的推移角膜细胞向生物粘附剂中的迁移来评估体内生物粘附剂的综合能力。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Partnerships for Innovation-Technology Translation (PFI-TT) project is a new biocompatible, antimicrobial and transparent adhesive for corneal repair and grafting that will significantly reduce costs of extended and secondary treatment associated with current standards of care. Of the 2.4 million eye injuries yearly in the US, 600,000 are open globe corneal tears, leading to blindness in 50,000 cases. There are 18 million cases of such blindness worldwide. The annual corneal grafting market is 40,000 procedures nationally and an estimated 185,000 worldwide. The proposed product is expected to circumvent the limitations of current surgical approaches and postoperative cost and care in corneal repair. This would result in cost savings for the entire ecosystem, such as patients, insurance companies (including Medicare), and hospitals. The commercialization potential in the US and world markets can potentially generate job opportunities in research and development, marketing, and manufacturing. Additional technical teaching and outreach opportunities involving students from underrepresented backgrounds, women, minorities, and people with disabilities are targeted with this project work. The proposed project presents a biocompatible and antimicrobial bioadhesive for corneal repair and grafting. Current standards of care include suturing and cyanoacrylate glue, which suffers from additional treatment costs related to astigmatism, secondary infections, cytotoxicity, and retinopathy. The proposed product is expected to mitigate these secondary problems with its biocompatibility, high adhesion, flexibility, and high strength. The adhesive will rapidly integrate corneal cells to facilitate wound sealing, reducing the chances of secondary infection and the associated incremental hospitalization and medication costs. The material transparency will enable rapid vision restoration. The material is strongly adhesive and antimicrobial, preventing accidental removal and offering excellent stability and high retention. The goals of this project will be accomplished with three main tasks. In the first task, the team will systematically explore the effect of experimental conditions on bioadhesive characteristics, such as tissue adhesion, biocompatibility, flexibility, transparency, and antibacterial properties. In the second task, degradation and retention of the bioadhesive will be determined by investigating the changes when applied to corneal tears. In the third task, the integrative capacity of the bioadhesive in vivo will be assessed by studying its effects on corneal cells, as well as the migration of corneal cells into the bioadhesive over time.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.