1^st International Workshop on Tissue Engineering, European Tissue Culture Society German Branch, Hannover, 15^th-17^th October 1998

This workshop provided an update in several fast-moving areas of bioengineering, including heart, liver, skin, bone and cartilage. A recurrent theme was the management of embryonic stem cells to induce differentiation to adult tissue and organ form. There is currently considerable activity in the development of hepatic bioreactors, using primary and immortalised hepatocytes, as well as different designs of systems. For skin, it is seen that rapid progress is underway not just because of the need to deal with surface injuries, burns and cosmetic needs, but because of pressure for reduction in animal experiments and test systems. Bioartificial skin can be constructed using collagen as a carrier, seeded with fibroblasts and coated with keratinocytes. Collagen as a carrier is highly biocompatible, though there are considerations with the use of materials of animal origin. Collagen-elastin membranes can also be used. At this stage, there is no real progress with development of fully-functional skin replacement, containing other elements of dermis such as nerves, glands and hair follicles. The section on bone and cartilage gave progress reports on European research into repair using autologous ex vivo cultured cells. There is considerable success with cartilage repair using this technique. The most important challenge is to maintain the ability of chondrocytes to secrete collagen type II and avoid dedifferentiation into fibroblast-like cells. Further information can be obtained from the Leibniz Laboratory of the Medical High School at Hannover (LEBAO) tel +49 511 532 3310. Summary prepared by L P M Lloyd-Evans

A Brief Report from the Second Intercontinental Meeting of Hair Research Societies

The Second Intercontinental Meeting of Hair Research Societies was held in Washington DC from the 5th to 7th November 1998. The aim of this meeting was to bring together, under the auspices of the European, American, Japanese and Australasian hair research societies, scientists and clinicians interested in both basic and applied aspects of hair biology. The meeting was well attended with over 350 participants registered. The major take home message of the meeting was that the molecular signals that tell skin to make hair follicles and skin appendages, and their spatial and temporal patterns of expression are now being understood. As a result of this data proposed models of skin appendage neogenesis have been described and from these models it has been suggested by Professor Chen-Ming Chuong (USC) that it should be possible to regenerate skin appendages, including hairs, by putting competent cell types into the right context. It is certain that the matrices in which these cells are placed will lay a key role in establishing the right context for neogenesis. The hair follicle matrix project in the European Biomaterials Network (BE-4301) is therefore both timely and at the forefront of hair follicle biology. Report contributed by Queen Mary & Westfield College Centre for Cutaneous Research

The EBN Seminar – Industry Trends and Forecasts, at the Spring Medical Device Technology Conference, London, Wednesday 3^rd March 1999

Meredith Lloyd-Evans, Administrative Co-ordinator of the European Biomaterials Network, organised and chaired the afternoon part of this one-day session on Industry Trends and Forecasts. The morning was organised and chaired by Professor David Williams of the University of Liverpool, an EBN member. The afternoon session covered Technology Assessment and Transfer. Speakers included Victoria Dedrick of the International Association of Prostheses Manufacturers, talking about technology Assessment of Medical Devices: an Industry perspective, Dr Geoffrey Andrews of Ranier Technology, discussing process design for manufacturability, Nigel Chivers of NCF Associates, covering sources of commercial intelligence and how to use them, and Dr Caroline Vance, CEO Scotland of the Centre for Exploitation of Science and Technology, whose talk was entitled Harnessing Knowledge for Performance.

Vickie Dedrick set out the need for a new vision of technology assessment that took into account the longer term benefits of biomaterials and medical devices. Technology Assessment and Evidence-based medicine go hand in hand; thus the study of outcomes is important. However, due to the innovative nature of the medical devices industry, there are few solid and reliable outcome studies that can measure the cost-benefit of the new products versus conventional treatments. This puts a burden on manufacturers and governments alike. Even Sweden, with the best state-managed technology assessment programme in the world, has a backlog of 400 new technologies to deal with. However, the uptake and use of new technologies that will have a significant beneficial impact on patient life and on overall healthcare costs will be hindered without a new initiative in technology assessment.

Geoffrey Andrews reviewed the requirements for successful design implementation within companies. He stressed the need for an iterative process of design and checking against objectives, and the structure and functioning of an effective design team. In the absence of frequent review of progress and checking against the final requirements of the product, the inevitable end-result is project over-run, cost over-run and the need for extensive re-design late in the programme when the gap between the design and the market needs becomes painfully clear.

Nigel Chivers, who runs his own market information consultancy, covered the gamut of media that can be used to ensure that a business progresses. There are 15-20,000 registered medical device manufacturers in Europe, although many of these may be component or adhesive suppliers. Knowing about the commercial and development activities of all these companies is clearly impossible. But it is necessary to gather information together, because it is the sum of many strands of information that allows a commercial decision to take place. However, filtering and selection of information is also very important. Too much information takes too much time to analyse and attempts to gather comprehensive information and keep it up to date will become costly exercises in pursuit of a perfection that is not practical. In a recent audit of a very expensive information-gathering system, it was discovered that only 30% of the information was ever used. Two important tasks are therefore to know what is needed, and why. In addition, it should be decided how well the needs are met by easily-available information.

Caroline Vance approached the subject of knowledge management to suggest ways in which companies and organisations can capitalise on the knowledge and imagination that individuals possess. Intellectual Capital is no longer just patents, copyrights and trademarks, it encompasses experience, skills, brainpower and knowledge. But it is not just what people in an organisation know, it is what they, and the organisation as a whole, do with that knowledge. Managing knowledge in a strategic way brings benefits, often financial, not only to companies but also to those in research environments. There are a number of questions and goals involved – understanding the ‘what’ and ‘why’ of knowledge, creating a climate to support knowledge exchange and use, and putting systems and technologies in place to assist this, are part of the story. Knowing the what and why also means knowing where the knowledge-intensive processes and activities are within an organisation, being able to measure or estimate how well knowledge is being used, and creating the knowledge needed for future activities.