UCL patented technology used in potential new treatment for Corneal Surface Disease

Researchers at UCL have made a significant advance towards developing a treatment for Corneal Surface Disease, using RAFTTM; a UCLB patented technology licensed to Tap Biosystems.

The development was led by Professor Robert Brown at UCL's Tissue Repair and Engineering Centre (TREC) and Professor Julie Daniels at the UCL's Institute of Ophthalmology, in collaboration with TAP Biosystems and funding from the Technology Strategy Board.

Professor Daniels used an innovative method of synthetic tissue production, known as RAFTTM, which uses collagen to create corneal tissue; closely mimicking that of actual human cornea. It has the potential to significantly improve the success rates of cornea repair surgery and will allow people with corneal surface disease to have replacements without waiting for eye donors.

The patented RAFTTM technology has previously been used to create a wide range of different artificial human tissues. This is the first time it has successfully been used to mimic that of human cornea tissue.

"This project has advanced our understanding of what is required to engineer a tissue in the laboratory for patient transplantation," explains Julie Daniels, Professor of Regenerative Medicine and Cellular Therapy at the Institute of Ophthalmology. "It's exciting because it provides a real prospect for treating patients with blinding corneal surface disease, using a stem cell populated tissue equivalent that is simply, quickly and reproducibly prepared."

Dr Rachel Hemsley, Senior Business Manager at UCLB said "This project is an exciting contribution of disciplines bringing together regenerative medicine and tissue engineering with the aim of meeting a key medical need of restoring sight to patients. This advance has arisen through the long standing relationship between IoO at UCL, UCLB and Tap Biosystems".