Translation of an innovative microgel technology for improving swallowing in the elderly

创新微凝胶技术改善老年人吞咽功能的转化

• 批准号: ES/X006565/1
• 负责人: Olivia Pabois
• 金额: $ 6.42万
• 依托单位: University of Leeds
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Research Grant
• 财政年份: 2022
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2022 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=ES%2FX006565%2F1
• 关键词: Translation; innovative; microgel; technology; improving

Dry mouth, due to a reduction/absence of salivary flow/lubricity, affects at least 10 million people in the UK, predominantly elders. Largely driven by age-related chronic/neurogenerative diseases and polypharmacy, oral dryness significantly increases the risk of dental caries, periodontal diseases, candidiasis, oral ulceration, and dysphagia - all of which adversely impact the nutritional status and quality of life of elderly people. Numerous salivary replacers are commercially available, but none offers long-lasting relief due to their poor lubrication properties, thus forcing sufferers to use mouth spray repeatedly all day long to be able to eat. Subsequent malnutrition, which affects 1.3 million over-65s, results in a £7.3 billion annual loss.We have recently patented an innovative, highly lubricating saliva substitute for dry mouth sufferers, which offers 95% more effective lubrication and a 50% longer relief period than both currently marketed saliva-replacing products and the naturally lubricating human saliva. Our technology forms a viscous fluid film that moistens/lubricates the mouth (lubricity-improving hydration thanks to the water-encapsulating biopolymeric hydrogel) and stays adsorbed onto the human tongue/palate following ingestion (long-lasting hydration thanks to the efficiently adsorbing proteinaceous microgel). Besides technical development, we have demonstrated up-scaling feasibility and regulatory compliance.Our novel lubricant will overcome the bottleneck of the sub-optimal performance of marketed aqueous lubricants, and will surely contribute to addressing the long-standing swallowing issues faced by elders. This award will allow conducting further proof-of-principle work, including manufacturing a safety compliant medical device, assessing its cost, and building a robust business case.

由于唾液流量/润滑性减少/缺乏而导致的口干症影响着英国至少 1000 万人，其中主要是老年人。口腔干燥很大程度上是由与年龄相关的慢性/神经退行性疾病和复方药物引起的，会显着增加龋齿的风险。 、牙周病、念珠菌病、口腔溃疡和吞咽困难——所有这些都会对老年人的营养状况和生活质量产生不利影响，市面上有许多唾液替代品，但还没有。由于其润滑性能较差，可提供持久的缓解，因此迫使患者整天反复使用口腔喷雾剂才能进食，从而影响 130 万 65 岁以上的人，每年造成 73 亿英镑的损失。最近获得了一种针对口干症患者的创新型高润滑唾液替代品的专利，与目前市售的唾液替代产品和我们的技术形成一种粘性液膜，可以湿润/润滑口腔（由于水包封的生物聚合水凝胶，可提高润滑性），并在摄入后保持吸附在人类的舌头/上颚上（由于具有持久的水合作用）除了技术开发之外，我们还展示了扩大规模的可行性和法规合规性。我们的新型润滑剂将克服瓶颈该奖项将有助于开展进一步的原理验证工作，包括制造符合安全标准的医疗设备、评估其性能。成本，并建立一个强大的业务案例。

项目成果

Benchmarking of a microgel-reinforced hydrogel-based aqueous lubricant against commercial saliva substitutes

微凝胶增强水凝胶基水性润滑剂与商业唾液替代品的基准测试

• DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-46108-w
• 发表时间: 2023-11-20
• 期刊: Scientific Reports
• 影响因子: 4.6
• 作者: Olivia Pabois;Alej;ro Avila;ro;M. Ramaioli;Mingduo Mu;Yasmin Message;Kwan;Evangelos Liamas;B. Kew;Kalpana Durga;Lisa Doherty;A. Sarkar
• 通讯作者: A. Sarkar