TheraGlass® is a novel nano-material which interacts with the body’s tissues to stimulate cell growth and provide vital anti-bacterial, structural or regenerative proteins. NovaThera has demonstrated a wide range of applications including a textile form. TheraGlass® can be used for wound healing, drug delivery and other regenerative medicine applications.

NovaThera intends to expand its research programme to explore the full potential of TheraGlass®. The quality of NovaThera’s materials research programmes has been recognised by the award of 2 prestigious CASE studentships to partner with centres of excellence at Cranfield and Bristol Universities.

NovaThera has been awarded an Industrial CASE Studentship in collaboration with Dr. Bo Su, Dept Oral and Dental Science (University of Bristol) to research novel fabrication of bioglass and its composites in various structures/forms for orthopaedic and dental applications. NovaThera has also been awarded an ICASE EEDA Studentship to work with Dr J Alcock in the Materials Department (Cranfield University) to utilise advanced micro-injection moulding techniques in the manufacture of complex-shaped, TheraGlass®based scaffolds with interconnected pore structure. The mechanical properties would be tailored via an additional polymer to make a TheraGlass® composite. The ambitious aims are to have world beating advanced micro-injection moulding process to allow low-cost complex shape manufactured from nanoporous TheraGlass®.

“We are delighted to be able to extend our R&D programmes in this way.This will enable us to extend our technology and reinforce our commercial success in a competitive environment.” said CSO of NovaThera Gareth Roberts.

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Notes to editors:

Background on NovaThera Ltd
NovaThera Ltd is an Imperial College spin out company. NovaThera specializes in pioneering applications of biomaterials and stem cell biology for regenerative medicine to provide innovative therapeutic solutions (wound management, bone repair, lung repair). For more information about NovaThera, please visit http://www.novathera.com.

Background on Dr Alcock Cranfield University Dept Materials UK
Dr. Alcock is a Senior Lecturer in Materials. His areas of expertise are powder processing science and technology, micro-device fabrication by micro-injection moulding, tribology of materials, and magnetic properties of materials. Since 1998, Dr. Alcock has held six EPSRC and IMRC grants worth in total some £2.5 million. He was principal investigator on a two-year Teaching Company Scheme project, analyzing powder process scale up techniques. He is currently an investigator on the £9 million EPSRC 3D-Mintegration Grand Challenge project, as well as on two IMRC grants, one on micromachining, and the other on the implications of the product-service-systems approach to micro-device design. He has been vice-chair of the IOM3 Ceramic Science Committee since 2001, and was appointed to the EPSRC Peer Review College in 2003. In 2004 he was awarded a £100,000 grant from the East of England Development Agency (EEDA) for facilities development at Cranfield. He has also received a £125,000 Research Councils' UK grant to support a new-blood academic fellow at Cranfield. Dr. Alcock recently held an £80,000 EPSRC Public Partnership Award the purpose of which is to attract young people into science and engineering. www.cranfield.ac.uk/sas/materials

Background on Dr Bo Su, Department of Oral & Dental Science, University of Bristol, UK
Dr Su is a Senior Lecturer in Biomaterials. He currently also holds an EPSRC Advanced Research Fellowship (2003-2008). He and his Biomaterials Engineering Group (bioMEG) joined the Department of Oral and Dental Science at University of Bristol in April 2005 from the Interdisciplinary Research Centre (IRC) in Materials at University of Birmingham. He has extensive research experience on polymer and ceramic matrix composites, processing of ceramics and coatings, and micro-/nano-fabrication. His current research interests include net shape fabrication of ceramics, nanocomposites and surface engineering of biomaterials. www.dentalschool.bris.ac.uk

Contacts:

NovaThera
Dr Gareth Roberts, CSO g.roberts@novathera.com

This press release contains forward looking statements that involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from the results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by these forward looking statements.