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The research team led by Professor Wang Dan Michelle from the Faculty of Medicine’s School of Biomedical Sciences in The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK), in collaboration with The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Sun Yat-Sen University, and Monash University, Australia, has developed “TenoGel”, a hydrogel engineered for tendon repair, using a pioneering high-throughput and data-driven strategy, which helps accelerate tendon healing.

This innovative approach moves beyond conventional trial-and-error methods, providing effective and predictable biomaterial R&D solutions through high-throughput data analysis based on bioinformatics and computational modelling. The team’s findings, recently published in the prestigious journal Advanced Materials, marked a significant milestone in advancing biomaterial development.

Streamlined approach identifies optimal hydrogel design for tendon regeneration

The global demand for biomaterials is surging, with over 10 million patients relying on them for applications from wound care to sports injuries, and the biomaterial market is projected to reach US$372.7 billion by 2028 [1] [2]. However, up to 80% of lab-developed biomaterials fail to reach clinical use due to the complex interplay of biological responses, material properties and applications requirements [3]. Conventional trail-and-error methods have slowed progress and yielded unpredictable outcomes.

To overcome these challenges, Professor Wang’s team has pioneered a computational, data-driven approach to assess and predict biomaterial-driven tendon healing outcomes. By analysing extensive in-house datasets that encompass thousands of gene interactions in response to various hydrogel design features, the team can rapidly assess thousands of candidates designs to identify optimal design combinations for effective tendon regeneration.

This data-driven approach led to the creation of “TenoGel”, a hydrogel uniquely engineered to replicate the natural tendon environment, demonstrating exceptional tendon healing capabilities in laboratory tests. TenoGel sustained stem cell viability for over eight weeks, addressing a key challenge in stem cell therapies. In a rat model of large tendon injury model, it achieved nearly 90% restoration of tendon strength within just two months while effectively preventing undesirable, irreversible ossification.

A vision for AI-driven biomaterial development

Professor Wang and her team envision a transformative era for biomaterial development powered by artificial intelligence (AI). She said: “We are currently enhancing our high-throughput, data-driven biomaterial development methods by incorporating AI and multimodal data analysis. By integrating comprehensive biological data, including patient clinical information, we aim to accelerate the biomaterial R&D process and improve clinical outcomes, or at least to optimise our development efforts through a ‘fail fast, fail early’ approach.”

One of the key contributors was Dr Zhang Wanqi, Post-doctoral Fellow from the Faculty of Medicine’s School of Biomedical Sciences at CUHK. The team foresees a future where biomaterials are intelligently designed by combining conventional methods and AI-assisted approaches, based on specific injury patterns and individual patient needs. This smart design methodology aims to achieve improved healing outcomes, a significantly faster production, and more cost-effective solutions. It will not only hold the potential to significantly improve clinical translation success but also to enhance medical outcomes, driving progress in personalised treatment.

For the full research, please visit: https://advanced.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/adma.202313722

[1] Serban, M. A. Translational biomaterials-the journey from the bench to the market-think ‘product’. Curr Opin Biotechnol 40, 31-34, doi: 10.1016/j.copbio.2016.02.009 (2016).

[2] MarketsandMarkets. Biomaterials Market: Growth, Size, Share, and Trends, <https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/biomaterials-393.html> (2024).

[3] Lele, M., Kapur, S., Hargett, S., Sureshbabu, N. M. & Gaharwar, A. K. Global trends in clinical trials involving engineered biomaterials. Sci Adv 10, eabq0997, doi:10.1126/sciadv. abq0997 (2024).