Smart scaffold to rebuild damaged bladders
Developing a SMART scaffold for bladder augmentation
This work is creating a implantable 'smart' scaffold that helps regrow healthy bladder tissue and lets doctors monitor recovery for people with severely damaged bladders.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Northwestern University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Chicago, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11252532 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If you need bladder augmentation because of trauma, cancer, spina bifida, or severe interstitial cystitis, doctors currently use a piece of bowel to expand the bladder and many patients have serious complications. This project is designing a 'smart' scaffold — an implantable material meant to support and speed up growth of new bladder tissue while avoiding diseased bladder cells. The scaffold will include wireless sensors so clinicians can monitor tissue regeneration in real time and detect problems early. Researchers will develop and test these materials in improved preclinical models at Northwestern with the goal of progressing toward human use.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: People with end-stage bladder disease or severe bladder damage considering augmentation surgery, including those with trauma, cancer-related loss, spina bifida, or advanced interstitial cystitis, are the likely future candidates.
Not a fit: People with mild bladder symptoms who do not need augmentation or those with active widespread cancer or infection of the urinary tract may not benefit from this approach.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this approach could replace bowel-based augmentation and reduce complications like perforation, kidney damage, and malignant changes.
How similar studies have performed: Previous tissue-engineering attempts to replace enterocystoplasty have largely failed in clinical use, so combining improved scaffolds with wireless monitoring is a relatively novel strategy.
Where this research is happening
Chicago, United States
- Northwestern University — Chicago, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Ameer, Guillermo Antonio — Northwestern University
- Study coordinator: Ameer, Guillermo Antonio
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.