Business
UK Government Grant for Skin
UK Government Grant for Skin.
About this update from Ilika Plc
[{"type":"text","content":"\n RNS Number : 0245Q Ilika plc 28 July 2010 \n \n\n \n \n \n \n28 July 2010\n \nIlika plc\n \n(\"Ilika\" or the \"Company\")\n \n \nUK Government Grant for Skin Wound Re-Generation Treatment\n \n \nIlika plc (AIM:IKA), the advanced cleantech materials discovery company, is delighted to announce that a collaboration between three UK organisations with world-leading technology in the field of skin regeneration, led by Altrika Limited (\"Altrika\"), Ilika's healthcare-focused subsidiary, has been awarded a £153,000 grant from the UK government for the development of a treatment for full thickness skin wounds..\n \nAltrika, the RAFT Institute and the Cardiff University have secured the grant from the Technology Strategy Board to bring together their technology and expertise to address a market currently worth over £6.0 billion.\n \nExisting technologies in the field of skin wound treatment have shown some success, but there is no universally accepted solution to the problem of hard-to-heal wounds. This is largely due to the delicate nature of these wounds and the inability of the existing products to cope with a range of conditions in which they must work. Many of the products currently available are prohibitively expensive, further preventing their broader uptake. It is estimated that there are nearly half a million unhealed chronic skin wounds in the UK alone.\n \nThis programme brings together Altrika's market-leading polymer surface technology for epidermal regeneration, which forms the basis of its Myskin® and Cryoskin® burns treatment products, the SmartMatrix dermal scaffold currently being developed by the RAFT Institute and the micro-engineering capabilities of the Manufacturing Engineering Centre (MEC) at Cardiff University. By combining the epidermal and dermal components, the programme aims to develop a more robust, full thickness solution which is both more effective and more cost effective than existing solutions.\n \nCommenting on the award, Ilika's Chief Executive, Graeme Purdy, said: \"We are delighted to have secured this grant from the Technology Strategy Board. Myskin® and Cryoskin® are already in successful commercial production; combining this technology with the SmartMatrix scaffold will allow us to enhance our commitment to the treat...