ForceRepair – Smart and Multifunctional 3D Printable Pro-Regenerative Biological Matrix Modulating Mechanotransduction as Advanced Therapy to Treat Skin Chronic Wounds | ForceRepair

TOWARDS IMPROVED WOUND MANAGEMENT

Chronic wounds, clinically defined as wounds that usually do not heal in less than three months, affect up to 2% of the population in the industrial world, with incidents expected to rise significantly in the next years. However, current therapies remain insufficient and costly. To date, chronic wounds treatments have not been able to achieve reliable skin regeneration and reduce scar formation.

FORCE REPAIR aims to advance chronic wound management by developing a smart, multifunctional, and cost-effective 3D-printed wound dressing that effectively combats bacterial infections and inflammation, promotes healing, and relieves skin tension. This innovative dressing uses cutting-edge technologies such as nanocarriers, antibiotics, and anti-inflammatory drugs, along with pro-regenerative active ingredients. It will offer a sustained regenerative effect for a minimum of 15 days, which will greatly reduce the frequency at which nurses need to change the dressing. This will ultimately lead to a fully healed wound with a low likelihood of re-opening.

CREATING A SMART 3D-PRINTABLE WOUND DRESSING

The FORCE REPAIR concept is based on a unique 3D printable hyaluronic acid-based self-healing hydrogel (HA-Ag-DH) with antibacterial and bioadhesive properties, which will maintain the moisture of the wound over a long period of time. The printable biomaterial will allow the placement of each component in a strategic location to fight infection and reduce inflammation to recreate the environment of healthy tissue.

Duration:
4 years

Budget:
5.1 Mil EUR

Project Partners:
14

12/02/2024

In the EWMA Newsletter: Dr Damien Dupin discusses the benefits of FORCE REPAIR Technology for patients with chronic wounds

Dr Damien Dupin, the coordinator of the FORCE REPAIR project and head of the Biomaterials Unit at CIDETEC, recently shared valuable insights in an i...

15/09/2023

FORCE REPAIR participated in a Cluster Collaboration Meeting with other Horizon 2020/Europe projects

The 33rd Annual Conference of the European Society for Biomaterials (ESB) brought 1,200 international researchers and innovators together at the famou...

02/02/2023

New Project “ForceRepair”

Launch of New EU Project FORCE REPAIR: Innovating Chronic Wound Treatment

International research team sets out to develop a smart, multifunctional, ...

Given the complexity of chronic wounds, in FORCE REPAIR, we will focus on the effective regeneration of the skin affected by infected chronic wounds. This can only be achieved if we consider the following aspects simultaneously and holistically: mechanical stability, reduction of undesired infection, and guided tissue regeneration. We will develop a smart wound dressing based on personalised 3D printable biological scaffolds to reduce undesired infection, mitigate inflammation, and relieve skin tension to recreate a healthy environment to induce skin self-healing and offer a prolonged regenerative effect.
Dr Damien Dupin, Project Coordinator
CIDETEC Nanomedicine

Growth factors and compounds, such as those to be explored in the FORCE REPAIR project, have shown differential effects on wound-related cells ex vivo in the presence of exudates from chronic wound patients. In order to assess the chances of success and to aid personalization of the new smart dressings, all of their components will be tested with human samples reflecting the aggressive milieu in chronic wounds.
Dr. Barbara Wolff-Winiski, MBA, Co-CEO and CSO
Akribes Biomedical GmbH (P6)

The smart wound dressing that is being developed in FORCE REPAIR truly leverages the flexibility provided by semi-solid extrusion 3D bioprinting and advanced CAD-CAM software tools to enable the fabrication of a complex multi-material scaffold with multifunctional properties that induce skin self-healing.
Camilo Andrés Cortés Acosta
VICOMTECH