THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Advanced research in chronic wound healing, hair regeneration and cartilage repair has got a shot in the arm with the establishment of Kerala University’s Advanced Centre for Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research in Cutaneous Biology (AcREM-Stem).
The first such facility of its kind to be set up in state universities, the centre will also have a 3D bio-printing laboratory for organ and tissue engineering.
According to AcREM-Stem honorary director P Sreejith, the establishment of the centre promises to drive forward research, development and the application of regenerative medicine in the state’s healthcare sector. “Our aim is to also create cellular models for therapeutic testing and develop alternative animal models for toxicity and drug metabolism studies,” he told TNIE.
The centre is the brainchild of Sreejith, who is an assistant professor of zoology at KU. Dr S A Hafiz, special officer, Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, Government of Kerala, gave valuable inputs for the project from the healthcare sector. The project was presented before the department of higher education and was given an assistance of Rs 4.4 crore under the scheme for Performance Linked Encouragement for Academic Studies and Endeavour (PLEASE).
Hair and skin regeneration is currently the prime focus of the research carried out at AcREM-Stem as the researchers associated with the facility have published numerous papers on the topic. “A lot of companies have already evinced interest in the hair follicle culture we developed to use it for testing the efficacy of hair growth products,” Sreejith said.
The researcher said that studies are going on the world over on how to use stem cells to develop organs that can be transplanted into the human body. It holds immense promise for treating chronic and degenerative conditions such as skin diseases, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and neurodegenerative disorders.
Though research in regenerative medicine is in the early stages in the state, the setting up of the centre is expected to accelerate the pace of studies in this domain. “Our aim is to establish biorepositories for human tissues and blood samples and provide comprehensive training programmes for students, scientists, and healthcare professionals,” Sreejith said.
Other projects of AcREM-Stem include the use of next-generation nanoparticles and herbal-based treatments for degenerative diseases. Commercialising nutraceuticals, cosmetics and stem cell therapies and also conducting early-phase clinical trials.