OtoPep

Cochlear implants are used to treat deafness. They are to be optimized by coating them with resorbable peptide polymer gels. These gels should a) represent a biofunctionalizable growth matrix for cells and b) serve as a drug depot in order to c) be able to administer nanoparticles of highly specific synthetic nucleic acids (siRNA) strictly locally. This establishes a cross-sectional technology for the targeted administration of active ingredients (drug targeting) that can be used for several medical indications.

Causes of severe hearing damage and deafness can be congenital or e.g. B. be caused by infections, tumors or trauma. If small children's hearing damage is not treated in good time, language acquisition will also become impossible. In Germany there are about 100,000 deaf and about 15,000 deaf/hearing impaired students alone. A cochlear implant as a thin electrode tube is implanted in the cochlea of deaf and disabled patients more and more frequently (approx. 80,000 worldwide). Frequently existing communication problems caused by noise can probably not be solved technically, but require biomedical supplements, for which an approach is to be implemented with this project.

A therapeutic application system is to be developed that serves a specific medical need and can be administered locally - minimally invasively or implant-supported - to the target organ. The system consists of biomimetic resorbable peptide polymer gels »NanoPep«, which a) represent a biofunctionalizable growth matrix for cells as a medical product and b) serve as a drug depot in order to c) be able to administer nanoparticles of highly specific synthetic nucleic acids (siRNA) strictly locally. The resulting cross-sectional technology of "drug targeting" using "NanoPep" can be used for several medical indications such as the biofunctionalization of cochlear implants in combination with drug-on-device or drug-in-device technologies. There is broad market potential for the utilization of the products.

For a possible clinical application of RNAi technology (Nobel Prize 2006) in the cochlea, we will specifically focus on the production of siRNA nanoparticles. This includes new cell-specific products in combination with a peptide gel. The incorporation of these nanotherapeutics into the peptide gel will allow for a new innovative drug delivery at the target site. The nano-biofunctionalized gels are tested in preclinical models in the inner ear of guinea pigs. Nanotherapeutic technology is a cross-sectional technology that could easily be applied to many other medical indications. The combined, far-reaching competences of the European countries will enable us to achieve the goals of this interdisciplinary regenerative therapy concept.