The first indigenously developed tissue engineering scaffold from mammalian organs, an animal-derived Class D Biomedical Device that can rapidly heal skin wounds at low-cost with minimum scarring, has received approval from the Indian Drugs Controller.
- With this, the Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST) became the first institution in the country to develop Class D medical devices that satisfy all statutory requirements of the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation, Government of India.
- The institute developed an innovative technology for preparing tissue engineering scaffolds from mammalian organs. They decellularised pig gall bladder and recovered extracellular matrix.
About Tissue engineering
- Tissue engineering evolved from the field of biomaterials development and refers to the practice of combining scaffolds, cells, and biologically active molecules into functional tissues.
- The goal of tissue engineering is to assemble functional constructs that restore, maintain, or improve damaged tissues or whole organs. Artificial skin and cartilage are examples of engineered tissues.
- Cells are the building blocks of tissue, and tissues are the basic unit of function in the body. Generally, groups of cells make and secrete their own support structures, called extra-cellular matrix.
- This matrix, or scaffold, does more than just support the cells; it also acts as a relay station for various signaling molecules.
