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The field of tissue engineering has been driven by the need to develop human tissue in vitro for the clinical purpose of replacing dead, diseased or non-functioning tissue in the body. The success of these engineered tissues relies on their ability to replicate the in vivo microenvironment as closely as possible, including (i) extracellular matrix, (ii) cell-cell communications, (iii) growth factor and cytokine gradients and (iv) cell architecture. Many in vitro scientists are ultimately striving for the same qualities in their models and thus tissue engineering has increasing scope to replace animals in basic research and safety testing with scientifically robust alternatives. However, the clinical focus of tissue engineering means that these other potential applications of the technology are often overlooked. This may be due to limited opportunities for communication between tissue engineers and non-clinical research communities that could benefit from adopting tissue engineering methods.
The NC3Rs manages a programme of work which brings together tissue engineers and scientists from academia and industry across various research fields to highlight how, and explore where, tissue engineering can replace animals. This muli-faceted programme includes initiatives to increase investment in tissue engineering and provides opportunities for communication and collaboration between diverse research communities.
Following on from the successful joint funding priority call in tissue engineering, the NC3Rs and BBSRC have hosted workshops in 2008 and 2009 to showcase examples where tissue engineering has enabled researchers to conduct their research without animals.
Building on the success of these workshops, the NC3Rs is currently developing a strategy to enable efficient translation of tissue engineering and stem cell technologies into commercial applications to replace/reduce animal use, and to improve the efficiency in the development of novel therapeutics and chemical safety assessment.
In 2009 the Centre hosted a speed-networking event which brought together tissue engineers from universities and small biotechnology companies with representatives from the pharamaceutical and chemical industries to explore potential partnerships, and the commercial uptake of the technology. As a result of this event, new collaborations have been established that have the potential to reduce animal use and improve drug/chemical development.
Working together with tissue engineering experts, the NC3Rs has published two reviews highlighting this programme of work and the potential scientific and animal welfare benefits associated with adopting tissue engineering approaches. The reviews were published in the journals Regenerative Medicine and Organogenesis.
For a printable PDF of the publications mentioned above, please contact Dr Anthony Holmes directly.
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