UKRMP SmartStep –  “Stepwise Translational Pathway for Smart Material Cell Therapy”.

A multicentre consortium that aims to explore ways to stimulate the patient’s own repair mechanisms by targeting their cell populations.

SmartStep is funded through the UK Regenerative Medicine Platform  (UKRMP) by the (BBSRC) Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, (EPSRC) Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and (MRC) Medical Research Council.

The Division of Trauma and Orthopaedic Surgery is the lead group on a prestigious 1.1 million grant recently awarded by the UK-Regenerative Medicine platform. This international, multi-centered grant will utilize a defined pipeline from laboratory to patient to evaluate cell free constructs in treating cartilage repair. The aim of the collaboration is to design biomaterials/biological factor construct(s) that can, through novel surface technology and bioactive molecule delivery, recruit, nurture and differentiate resident stem/progenitor cells within the joint to drive regeneration, and be used in the joint in a minimally invasive procedure.

Lead by Prof Andrew McCaskie, co-investigators include Professors Ruth Cameron and Serena Best  and Dr Frances Henson  in Cambridge, Prof Francesco Dell’Accio (Queen Mary, London), Prof de Bari (Aberdeen), Prof van Osch (Netherlands), Prof van der Kraan (Netherlands), Prof Kevin Shakesheff (Nottingham), Prof Carr (Oxford), Prof Richardson (Keele) and Prof Park (Liverpool).