Translation of an innovative microgel technology for improving swallowing in the elderly

创新微凝胶技术改善老年人吞咽功能的转化

• 批准号: ES/X006565/1
• 负责人: Olivia Pabois
• 金额: $ 6.42万
• 依托单位: University of Leeds
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Research Grant
• 财政年份: 2022
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2022 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=ES%2FX006565%2F1
• 关键词: Translation; innovative; microgel; technology; improving

Dry mouth, due to a reduction/absence of salivary flow/lubricity, affects at least 10 million people in the UK, predominantly elders. Largely driven by age-related chronic/neurogenerative diseases and polypharmacy, oral dryness significantly increases the risk of dental caries, periodontal diseases, candidiasis, oral ulceration, and dysphagia - all of which adversely impact the nutritional status and quality of life of elderly people. Numerous salivary replacers are commercially available, but none offers long-lasting relief due to their poor lubrication properties, thus forcing sufferers to use mouth spray repeatedly all day long to be able to eat. Subsequent malnutrition, which affects 1.3 million over-65s, results in a £7.3 billion annual loss.We have recently patented an innovative, highly lubricating saliva substitute for dry mouth sufferers, which offers 95% more effective lubrication and a 50% longer relief period than both currently marketed saliva-replacing products and the naturally lubricating human saliva. Our technology forms a viscous fluid film that moistens/lubricates the mouth (lubricity-improving hydration thanks to the water-encapsulating biopolymeric hydrogel) and stays adsorbed onto the human tongue/palate following ingestion (long-lasting hydration thanks to the efficiently adsorbing proteinaceous microgel). Besides technical development, we have demonstrated up-scaling feasibility and regulatory compliance.Our novel lubricant will overcome the bottleneck of the sub-optimal performance of marketed aqueous lubricants, and will surely contribute to addressing the long-standing swallowing issues faced by elders. This award will allow conducting further proof-of-principle work, including manufacturing a safety compliant medical device, assessing its cost, and building a robust business case.

由于唾液流量/润滑性的降低/缺乏，口干会影响英国至少1000万人，主要是老者。在很大程度上，由年龄相关的慢性/神经源性疾病和多药性驱动，口腔干燥显着增加了龋齿，牙周疾病，念珠菌病，口腔溃疡和吞咽困难的风险 - 所有这些都会不利地影响老年人生活的营养状况和质量。商业上有许多唾液替代品，但由于其润滑性不佳，因此没有人能提供长期的缓解，从而迫使患者整天反复使用口腔喷雾，无法进食。随后影响130万65人的营养不良，每年损失73亿英镑。我们最近为干口口腔患者提供了创新的，高度润滑的唾液替代品，该疗效的有效润滑和50％的救济期比当前销售的唾液更长50％。我们的技术形成了一种粘性流体膜，可润湿/润滑口腔（润滑性 - 改善水合，感谢您使用水的生物聚合物水凝胶），并保持吸附在人舌/舌头上，摄入后摄入后（有效地摄入的水合），感谢您有效地加热蛋白质蛋白质蛋白质蛋白质的微层。除技术发展外，我们还证明了可行性和法规合规性。我们的新颖润滑剂将克服市场润滑剂的次优性能的瓶颈，并肯定会为解决长者所面临的长期吞咽问题做出贡献。该奖项将允许进行进一步的原始工作，包括制造符合安全性的医疗设备，评估其成本以及建立强大的业务案例。