Post-Surgical Healing Accelerator with Modified Polymer Scaffold

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current post-surgical healing technologies lack effective solutions for accelerating tissue and nerve repair, as they often result in foreign body reactions, limited biocompatibility, and inefficient tissue integration.

Innovation Solution

A device comprising a substrate with a scaffold of modified polymers such as keratin, collagen, and hyaluronic acid, combined with specific cell populations, enhances tissue and nerve repair by increasing cell interaction and substrate association, and includes a hydrogel with growth factors for improved healing.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If conventional post-surgical healing technologies are used, then the treatment process is simple, but foreign body reactions occur and biocompatibility is limited

Engineering Contradiction:
ImprovebiocompatibilityVSAvoiddevice structure
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent uses composite materials by combining modified natural polymers (keratin, collagen, elastin, fibrin, fibronectin, gelatin, alginate, pectin, cellulose, hyaluronic acid, laminin, or vitronectin) with synthetic substrates. The polymers are chemically modified to include cell-adhesive peptides (such as RGD sequences) that enhance biocompatibility and cell interaction while maintaining structural integrity. This composite approach resolves the contradiction by achieving high biocompatibility through bioactive polymer modifications without requiring overly complex device structures.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #40Composite materials

2Productivity

If modified polymers with increased cell interaction are used, then tissue repair efficiency is improved, but manufacturing complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvetissue repair efficiencyVSAvoidmanufacturing process
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSEase of manufacture

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies parameter changes by chemically modifying natural polymers to incorporate cell-adhesive sequences. Specifically, peptides containing RGD (arginine-glycine-aspartic acid) sequences are conjugated to the polymer backbones through controlled chemical reactions. This modification changes the chemical parameters of the polymers to enhance cell interaction and tissue repair efficiency. The manufacturing process remains relatively simple by using established polymer chemistry techniques and standardized peptide conjugation methods, thus resolving the contradiction between improved productivity and manufacturing ease.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

3Reliability

If natural polymers are used in the scaffold, then biocompatibility is enhanced, but structural stability may be reduced

Engineering Contradiction:
ImprovebiocompatibilityVSAvoidstructural stability
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSStability of the object's composition

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies local quality by creating heterogeneous polymer compositions within the scaffold where different regions contain different ratios or types of modified polymers. For example, the outer layers may contain more structurally stable polymers like collagen or elastin, while inner regions contain more biocompatible and cell-adhesive polymers like fibronectin or laminin. This spatial variation in polymer composition allows the scaffold to simultaneously achieve structural stability where needed and enhanced biocompatibility where cell interaction is most critical, thus resolving the contradiction between these two properties.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

Data Source

PatentUS11103338B2Post-surgical healing accelerator
Publication Date: 2021.08.31 IMAM ABDULRAHMAN BIN FAISAL UNIV

AI summary

A post-surgical healing accelerator (PSHA) device for tissue and nerve repair at an injury site. The device includes (a) a substrate, (b) a scaffold disposed on a surface of the substrate, and (c) a population of cells attached to the scaffold. The scaffold comprises at least one modified polymer selected from a modified collagen, a modified gelatin, a modified alginate, a modified cellulose, a modified hyaluronic acid, and others, with (i) modifications configured to increase an interaction between the scaffold and the cells, (ii) modifications configured to increase an association of the at least one modified polymer with the substrate, and (iii) a combination of (i) and (ii). The cells attached to the scaffold are configured to carry out tissue and/or nerve repair at an injury site of a subject through at least one of growth, differentiation, and migration following an application of the device to the injury site of the subject.