Putty for bones: on sale soon
Treatment with "liquid bones" is planned to begin in three years
Andrey Velichko, Compulenta, A substance that is injected into a broken bone and restores its structure, can completely displace metal structures and prostheses used in fractures.
The nanomaterial developed by Professor Thomas Webster from Brown University (USA) contains nucleic acids similar to DNA. Each molecule of this drug has a pair of covalent bonds that connect it to other molecules.
Hisham Fenniri from the University of Alberta (Canada) conjured directly on the chemical composition of the "mixture". It is reported that there are no elements alien to our body in the composition.
After ingestion, the material hardens (this happens at the temperature of the human body), self-organizing into a tubular structure that resembles bone tissue. Drugs (antibiotics, anti-inflammatory) and growth factors can be added to the space between the nanotubes. According to the strength and other mechanical properties, the resulting substance does not differ from ordinary bone, the authors of the invention claim.
Scientists managed to sign a contract with Audax Medical, which develops technologies for the treatment of injuries and diseases of the musculoskeletal system. Now the innovation must undergo a series of clinical trials; by 2013, if all goes well, its commercial production will begin under the name of Arxis.
A million dollars will be invested in the development, and the price of one injection will be about $ 1-1.5 thousand, which is relatively inexpensive compared to other methods of therapy.
A colleague of Webster and Fennery, British professor Kevin Shakshef from the University of Nottingham, who developed his own version of "liquid bones", notes that the main problem is to create a material with the necessary strength characteristics. Moreover, the scientist clarifies, just pressing the artificial bone with all the human weight is one thing, it's not a problem, but achieving the desired values when working with the material for a fracture is another story...
Prepared based on the materials of Technology Review.
(If you want to read the original, this message is described in more detail and clearer in the press release of Brown University:
In the lab, engineer's novel liquid provides a solid fix for broken bones – VM.)
Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru
14.12.2010