Business
Cambridge & FIPP collaborate to tackle gum disease
Cambridge & FIPP collaborate to tackle gum disease.
About this update from Frontier Ip Group Plc
[{"type":"text","content":"\n \n \n RNS Number : 1614Q\n Frontier IP Group plc\n 17 June 2020\n \n \n \n \n RNS REACH\n \n \n AIM: FIPP\n \n \n 17 June 2020\n \n \n \n \n \n Frontier IP Group Plc\n \n \n (\"Frontier IP\" or the \"Group\")\n \n \n \n \n \n University of Cambridge and Frontier IP collaboration to tackle gum disease wins grant funding from the National Biofilm Innovation Centre \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Frontier IP, a specialist in commercialising intellectual property, today announces that a collaborative project between the Group and the University of Cambridge (the \"University\") to tackle gum disease has been awarded a £52,891 grant by the National Biofilms Innovation Centre (\"NBIC\"). \n \n \n \n \n \n The collaboration builds on the work of Dr Ioanna Mela, a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the University, into DNA nanostructures and their potential as drug delivery vehicles that can penetrate and disrupt biofilms. Biofilms are films of microorganisms that grow on surfaces, such as animal and plant tissue, minerals and metals. They include dental plaque, pond scum and many others. \n \n \n \n \n \n The NBIC Proof of Concept grant is supporting an eight-month project to explore the potential of origami-like DNA nanostructures to disrupt the dental plaque biofilms formed by P.gingivalis, the bacterium responsible for gum disease. The project will also seek to identify at least one DNA nanostructure to take forward into commercial development in partnership with industry. It is one of 14 projects awarded funding by the NBIC. \n \n \n \n \n \n Frontier IP identified the potential of Dr Mela's work for use against P.gingivalis and will work on the commercialisation of the technology as part of the project. \n \n \n \n \n \n The NBIC is an Innovation Knowledge Centre funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, Innovate UK and the Hartree Centre, and is led by four universities - Edinburgh, Liverpool, Southampton and Nottingham - with a consortium of 52 academic partner institutions. \n \n \n \n \n \n Dr Ioanna Mela, Postdoctoral Research Associate at the University of \n Cambridge, said\n : \n \n \"I am grateful for the funding and very excited to explore the potential of DNA nanostructures against biofilms\n \n \n . \n \n \n It is a questi...