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Technology originally developed to witness black holes colliding is now being used to grow human bone in a laboratory, which could revolutionise the treatment of bone injuries.

The research team used measurement technology, based on the sophisticated laser interferometer systems designed in the UK for gravitational wave detection, to turn stem cells into bone cells.

In a new paper published yesterday (12 September), scientists report how the precision technology created through funding from the UK’s Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) is now being used to underpin the new technique known as ‘nanokicking’.

Stuart Reid, Professor of Biomedical Engineering at The University of Strathclyde (formerly at the University of the West of Scotland), said: “Having spent 15 years working in astrophysics and gravitational wave detection (the LIGO project) it is amazing to see technology arising that could revolutionise key aspects of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine.”

The process of nanokicking, vibrating stem cells thousands of times a second by fractions of a millimetre, turns the cells into a ‘bone putty’ that has potential to be used to heal bone fractures and fill bone where there is a gap.

These mesenchymal stem cells, which are naturally produced by the human body in bone marrow, are the building blocks for life as they have the unique potential to become bone, cartilage, ligament, tendon and muscle.

Using the laser technology created to measure gravitational wave detections, scientists are able to measure precisely how much of a kicking the stem cells are getting.

Bone is the second most grafted tissue after blood and is used in reconstructive, maxillofacial and orthopaedic surgeries – but current options for bone graft are very limited.

The latest development in nanokicking has allowed scientists from the Universities of Glasgow, Strathclyde, the West of Scotland and Galway to grow three-dimensional samples of bone in the laboratory for the first time. When implanted into patients, these 3D grafts will be able to repair or replace damaged sections of bone.

Matthew Dalby, professor of cell engineering at the University of Glasgow, is one of the lead authors of the paper.

Professor Dalby said: “This is an exciting step forward for nanokicking, and it takes us one step further towards making the technique available for use in medical therapies. We are especially excited by these developments as much of the work we’re doing now is funded by Sir Bobby Charlton’s charity Find a Better Way, which aims to help people who have been seriously injured by landmines and where there is often a large bone deficit as a result of blast injuries.”

Now the team has advanced the process to the point where it can be replicated and is affordable, so will begin the first human trials in around three years. The team will combine the bone putty with large 3D printed scaffolds to fill large bone defects.

Project lead Professor Manuel Salmeron-Sanchez, from the University of Glasgow, said: “For many people who have lost legs in landmine accidents, the difference between being confined to a wheelchair and being able to use a prosthesis could be only a few centimetres of bone.

“In partnership with Find A Better Way, we have already proven the effectiveness of our scaffolds in veterinary medicine, by helping to grow new bone to save the leg of a dog who would otherwise have had to have it amputated.”

The research was funded by Find a Better Way, the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council.

The UK has been involved in gravitational wave research for over four decades, as key partners in a global collaboration led by the US. With the help of funding from STFC, UK scientists and engineers have pioneered key aspects of the technology behind gravitational-wave detection, and played a leading role in analysis of the data that allowed scientists to identify the source of gravitational waves.

For more information - University of Glasgow: Lab-grown bone cell breakthrough heralds new benefits for orthopaedics