Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences & Technology, which has the mandate of the Department of Science and Technology for the indigenous development of innovative medical devices, has secured 50 patents for various new products and technologies in the current year, the Head of the Biomedical Technology Wing of SCTIMST, P.R. Harikrishna Varma, said here.
The 50 patents granted to SCTIMST in the current year includes four foreign patents in countries like US, European Union, South Africa and Brazil.
SCTIMST has also successfully licensed and commercialised many of these patented technologies.
Dr. Varma , however, chose to highlight six of the new technologies it has developed and transferred to the medical devices industry for collaborative development
The first of these is the Bioactive HA-TCP ceramic beads for drug delivery.
Calcium phosphate bioceramics, which are usually combinations of hydroxyapatite (HA) and tricalcium phosphate (TCP), are widely accepted bone graft substitutes. Yet, they are not suitable for drug delivery in bone infection cases.
SCTIMST research team has developed a patented technique of making HA-TCP bioactive beads intended for drug delivery in bone infections (osteomyelitis). After achieving the infection control through drug delivery, the beads will remain at the site as osteoconductive and resorbable grafts which will integrate with the bone.
The technology of Bioactive HA-TCP ceramic beads for drug delivery has been transferred to M/s Onyx medicals Pvt Ltd, Meerut, UP
The second innovation is the Gelatin modified bioink for 3D bioprinting, named as Chitra GelMA UVS Bioink
Gelatin Methacrylamide is a chemically modified gelatin which is used to create live tissues through a cutting edge technology called 3D bioprinting. After printing, the resulting live tissue structure is stabilised through crosslinking by exposure to Ultra Violet (UV) light.
The novel formulation, the Chitra GelMA UVS Bioink, developed by SCTIMST, allows crosslinking while safeguarding the cells from UV exposure. It has been successfully tested for creating complex tissues such as the liver that expressed liver specific functions. The technology of Chitra GelMA UVS Bioink has been transferred to M/s Scire Science Pvt Ltd, Kalamassery, Kochi
The other patented novel devices include a hand-held automatic contrast injector, a Class C medical device intended for automatic delivery of contrast agents to facilitate coronary angiography and angioplasty (The technology of Automatic contrast injector has been transferred to M/s Cyrix Healthcare Pvt Ltd, Kochi for commercialisation) .
The Chitra Peacock Retractor is a uniquely designed retractor, with a flexible arm and an innovative 360-degree expansion mechanism that enhances access and visibility in the surgical field. This technology was initially developed for neurosurgeries but has broader applications. A memorandum of understanding (MoU) has been signed with South Indian Surgical Private Limited, Chennai (SISCO), for co-development and commercialisation of this technology.
SCTIMST has also collaborated with the Government Engineering College Barton Hill (GECBH) to develop two innovations.
One is a Automated trolley e drive for safe patient transport. This allows easy and safer patient transportation utilising a connectable electric powered machine that can be connected to any kind of patient stretcher (The technology of Automated trolley e drive for patient transport was transferred to M/s Quasys software & consultancy Pvt Ltd)
The other is a software, an innovative 3D visualisation tool tailored for medical teaching and preoperative surgical planning, offering clinicians advanced insights into a patient’s anatomy and pathology.
A tripartite MoU was signed between SCTIMST, GECBH and M/s Embedite Pvt. Ltd for further development of the software
Till date, SCTIMST has signed 73 Technology Transfer agreements with the medical devices industry, most of which have been in the cardiovascular, orthopaedic, dental and in vitro diagnostic device sectors
