Bone regeneration project wins Alfredo da Silva Research Award
The “BioMade4U” project which was led by researcher Christiane Salgado, recently won the Alfredo da Silva Research Prize – in the area of Sustainability of Health Systems – from the Amélia de Mello Foundation. The project was awarded 25,000 euros and proposes personalized treatment for cancer patients with osteoradionecrosis (bone necrosis caused by radiotherapy in patients with head and neck tumors) through the development of a “live” and innovative biomaterial (3D bioconstructions) that will promote the effective reconstruction and regeneration of damaged oral tissues, namely bone defects.
The funding obtained through the Alfredo da Silva Prize, says Christiane Salgado, “will be the starting point for the development of more intelligent, effective and biologically active biomaterials”. The objective, says the researcher from the “Biocomposites” group, “is to resort to tissue engineering and personalize the treatment of patients with osteoradionecrosis, regenerating the structure and function of oral tissues lost by tumor resection and radiotherapy”.
The products of this project, adds Christiane Salgado, “meet clinical needs to treat patients, with considerable advantages over current therapies to regenerate critical oro-maxillo-facial bone defects, not only because they promote a rapid rehabilitation of the patient , but also because of how they improve their quality of life, optimize costs, and reduce the time they are away from work”.
This project results from a collaboration between the “Biocomposites” group, led by Fernando Jorge Monteiro, the i3S group “Bioengineered 3D Microenvironments”, led by Dr. Cristina Barrias, and IPO-Porto, in the person of stomatologist Jorge Marinho.
Promoted by the Amélia de Mello Foundation and scientifically curated by Universidade NOVA de Lisboa / NOVAhealth, the Alfredo da Silva Research Prize funds three projects developed in Portuguese institutions in the areas of social, economic and political sustainability.