Background

Decellularization of tissues has recently emerged as a major player in the field of regenerative medicine and offers the possibility of producing a scaffold that closely mimics the physical and chemical cues seen by cells in vivo. Materials produced in this manner often have positive angiogenic and chemoattractant properties. Despite the availability of several injectable materials, there has yet to be identified an engineered material that avoids immune complications and encourages new fat formation. And while many tissues share similar extracellular matrix (ECM) elements, each tissue has its own complex composition and concentration of chemical constituents, which are known to regulate numerous cell processes including attachment, survival, migration, proliferation, and differentiation.

There continues to be a need for improved compositions for loose connective tissue repair, regeneration and cell culturing that will closely mimic the complexity of natural adipose extracellular matrix.

Technology Description

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego have demonstrated the feasibility of human lipoaspirate as a minimally-invasive option for adipose tissue engineering. Specifically, they have developed a new method and compositions using decellularized and delipidized extracellular matrix derived from adipose for tissue engineering (e.g. filling soft tissue defects, and cosmetic and reconstructive surgery). The adipose matrix is derived from the lipoaspirate (liposuction of the adipose or loose connective tissue).

State Of Development

Liposuctioned fat has been collected, processed into a decellularized material, digested, and neutralized. This neutralized solution has been shown in the lab to self-assemble into a gel both in the incubator or when injected subcutaneously into the back of female rats. A detailed description of this technology is found in the patent application referenced below.

Related Materials

• Young DA, Christman KL. Injectable biomaterials for adipose tissue engineering. Biomed Mater. 2012 Mar 29;7(2):024104. [Epub ahead of print] - 03/29/2012
• Young DA, Ibrahim DO, Hu D, Christman KL. Injectable hydrogel scaffold from decellularized human lipoaspirate. Acta Biomater. 2011 Mar;7(3):1040-9. - 03/01/2011

Patent Status

Country	Type	Number	Dated	Case
United States Of America	Published Application	2012/0264190	10/18/2012	2010-143

Other Information

Contact

University of California, San Diego Technology Transfer Office / invent@ucsd.edu / tel: View Phone Number. Please reference Tech ID #22420.

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