Innovation

Academic partnerships

By developing academic partnerships, HTL is committed to the creation of knowledge for the long-term evolution of medical practices.
Here are a few examples of ongoing projects.

GELMECS – Regenerative therapy

In December 2019, HTL and the joint research center RMeS (“Hermes”) U1229, set up GELMECS, a joint research structure (LabCom) coordinated by Pierre Weiss. RMeS is one of the French research laboratories specializing in regenerative medicine of the skeleton, bone, periodontitis, cartilage, osteoarthritis, and the intervertebral disc. The purpose of this structure is to develop hydrogels for synthetic extracellular matrices intended for the pharmaceutical industry, tissue engineering and assisted cell therapy. Prior to this, HTL and RMeS have been working together for 2 years on an initial application of a new patented method of Hyaluronic Acid reticulation. The joint research structure will enable the production of pharmaceutical grade biomaterials using Sililated Hyaluronic Acid and other reticulated biopolymers, for use in clinical trials as well as phase 1 trials in skeletal and cardiology fields among others. GELMECS joint research structure will allow the creation of future academy-industry consortia, opening up new applications.

GELMECS is supported by the French National Research Agency (ANR).

Click here to learn more about this project.

ImplantNano project – Regenerative therapy – dental applications

HTL is proud to be a partner of the ImplantNano project, coordinated by Janis Locs from Riga University, Latvia, which aims at developing a nano-drug delivery system for the one-shot regenerative therapy of peri-implantitis. This project is financed by the European Union. www.europe.bzh

Titanium-based dental implants are today’s most effective treatment for replacing missing teeth, but can lead to peri-implantitis, an inflammatory disease affecting the tissues surrounding the implant. The ImplantNano project aims to develop a hydrogel to be used at bone level. This hydrogel is composed of Ti-adhesive silated hyaluronic acid and contains nano-hydroxyapatite particles, that can release antibacterial substances. The purpose of the hydrogel is to stabilize the nano-device (a hydrogel-based membrane composed of Ti-adhesive silated hydroxypropylmethil cellulose/chitosan) at the gum/base interface. This technique should support a healthy physiological wound healing process by preventing tissue growth, promoting osseous regeneration and preventing bacterial proliferation.

HEMDental-Care® project – dental applications

HTL is proud to be a member of the HEMDental-Care® consortium project carried out by Hemarina, a French company specialized in the development of health products based on the unique oxygenating properties of extracellular hemoglobin obtained from a marine worm. HEMDental-Care®, an oxygenating gel for the treatment of periodontitis, is a medical device currently under development by Hemarina. This bacterial disease affects the supporting tissues of the tooth, but also dental implants. It is the first cause of tooth loss before tooth decay and can also lead to life-threatening pathologies. The pathogenic germs involved are sensitive to the presence of oxygen. The proposed medical device is a gel formulated with hyaluronic acid and marine hemoglobin, able to deliver oxygen locally, specifically targeting the microorganisms involved in this pathology without disrupting the oral microbiota. This project is co-financed by Région Bretagne and Labelled by Pôle Atlanpôle Biothérapies and Pôle Mer Bretagne Atlantique.

Learn more about the project here