Organoid Technologies for Clincial Use
Lab- Grown Artificial Organs
While the demand for organs continues to increase, the number of organs available for transplantation remains problematically low. Organoid-based technologies are a promising alternative solution to this problem and offer significant advantages over the traditional approach.
Organoid Therapeutics' biopharmaceutical products offer patients with end-stage glandular organ disease an alternative to a lifetime of pharmacological therapy. Our functional glandular organs are made using human organoid-based technologies, genetic engineering, next-gen biomaterials, transplantation science, and advanced robotics for large scale manufacturing.
Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells
iPSCs are derived from skin or blood cells that have been reprogrammed back into an embryonic-like state from which the cells can be grown into any type of human cell needed for therapeutic purposes. At Organoid Therapeutics, we aim to use iPSCs to generate the insulin-producing pancreatic islet cells that will be incorporated in our pancreatic organoids. Additionally, our technology is a self-regulating palliative that will not require immunosuppressants to ward off the body’s immune reaction. The genetically modified iPSC’s will be universally compatible to prevent immunorejection.
Genetic Engineering
The concept of cell transplantation is not novel. However, a recurring and unresolved problem associated with this approach is immunorejection. Various strategies have been proposed to prevent immunorejection including using each patient’s own cells and the establishment of HLA-typed cell banks. However, these approaches have been proven to be resource intensive making scaling up unrealistic. In contrast, Organoid Therapeutics’ approach consists of using CRISPR-Cas9 modification of HLA molecules to establish universally compatible cell banks of ready-to-use organoids.
Functional Vascular Network
Native pancreatic islet cells contain a dense capillary network to deliver nutrients and oxygen to the cells while carrying away cellular products and waste. However, all current initiatives to regenerative pancreatic islet transplantation attempt to generate a homogenous endocrine population without vasculature. Without vascularization, these therapies cannot be translated to clinical applications as the cells will die within a few days. Our technology is unique in that it encourages the formation of microvasculature within the organoids by integrating micro-vessel fragments in the 3D coculture, leading to the formation of a functional vascular network that can be integrated seamlessly into the host vasculature post-implantation.
Competitive Advantage
Advantages Over Current Treatment Options:
Organoids are self-regulating.
No risk of dosage regimen-related complications.
Non-compliance is not possible after organoid injection, but frequent with insulin injections.
Trained personnel (healthcare providers or patients themselves) are required for adequate, recurrent insulin administration, but only once for organoid injection.
Currently available autonomous technologies such as insulin pumps are malfunction-prone and expensive, and still require a continuous supply of consumable products to operate.
Advantages Over Novel Treatments in Development:
Universally immunocompatible approach.
Mitigation of foreign body reaction/encapsulation.
Vascularization of implanted constructs.
Cell and biological scaffold material sourcing
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