Researchers at Pitt have developed a pain-enabled in vitro system to study pain mechanisms and develop treatments specifically related to osteoarthritis (OA) and its associated pain.
Description
OA is a condition characterized by joint damage, leading to pain and disability, and the primary therapeutic target is to address the resulting pain. However, the underlying mechanism of OA pain is not fully understood, and there is a lack of long-term, safe, and efficacious medication to manage OA pain. The limitations of current in vitro cell culture and laboratory animal models further impede the successful development of OA pain medications. To address these challenges, the researchers introduce a pain-enable tissue chip to model the pathology of OA and its associated pain.
Applications
- Osteoarthritis pain
Advantages
The significance of this innovative approach becomes evident when compared to current in vitro cell culture and laboratory animal models. The chip's ability to replicate human joint elements using human cells and assess pain levels with innervated synovium presents a promising alternative to the limitations of current models. The potential of this chip to model OA pathology and pain provides a crucial tool for understanding the mechanisms underlying OA pain and developing effective treatments.
Invention Readiness
This technology is at the level of in vitro data. The key innovation in this chip is the engineering of major joint elements, such as bone, cartilage, synovium, and adipose tissue, from human cells. In particular, the synovium is innervated with neurons, enabling the assessment of pain levels. The use of human cell-derived, multi-tissue, innervated microphysiological chips is expected to serve as a robust platform for pain research and drug screening. The researchers emphasize that the outcomes from studying this chip will have clinical relevance due to the use of human tissue as opposed to animal tissue and the incorporation of multiple disease initiators.
IP Status
https://patents.google.com/patent/WO2023212416A1
