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HEStaff exchange2023–2027

Bicyclos · Breaking down barriers to foster new Cyclodextrin-based applications for healthcare by implementing sustainable design principles

Horizon Europe — Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions

Duration
2023-09-01 → 2027-08-31
EU contribution
€1,297,200
Participants
13
Scheme
HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-SE

Lines connect the coordinator with its partners.

Results in brief

Breaking down barriers to foster new Cyclodextrin-based applications for healthcare by implementing sustainable design principles

Cyclodextrins (CD) are circular "sugar" molecules with a truncated cone shape and have found applications in different sectors: pharmaceutical sector, food, agriculture, environment, separation processes, etc They have a “green” origin, as they can be obtained from enzymatic degradation of starch, a natural product. They are also low cost which makes them the ideal class of compounds for further fields of exploitation. However, depending on the selected application they still suffer limits of various nature, and in the field of biomedical applications some problems need to be faced: • Synthetic protocols to produce new modified cyclodextrins starting from the natural cyclodextrins afford mixtures of cyclodextrins isomers; these methods are not sustainable neither upgradable; • Purification of cyclodextrin isomer mixtures is difficult and expensive; • There is little knowledge about cyclodextrin biology and their behaviour in the human body and overall in living organisms; • Inclusion by cyclodextrins of, for example, drugs, in the cavity of the truncated cone can be unique but is still underexploited; • Cyclodextrin polymers are easily prepared with green methods but there is still little control on the molecular weight of the polymer and batch-to-batch reproducibility has not yet been achieved. This is a strong limit in their application for drug delivery as very rigid regulatory rules must be met to be approved by the drug agencies. The goal of the Bicyclos project is to find solutions to some of these problems in order to bring cyclodextrin-based medical systems closer to clinical applications. New discoveries on the sustainable production on Cyclodextrin-based molecules conform to production requirements for pharmaceuticals are expected and they will open a wide range of new applications. Most importantly, as cyclodextrin systems can be combined with different drugs that are already approved by food and drug agencies, we expect to find solutions for different diseases according to the chosen drug or combination of drugs. Not only, the new cyclodextrin molecules will be exploited also to develop new sensing applications in clinical settings as well as beyond.

Data: CORDIS, © European Union

Project objective

Cyclodextrins (CD) have already gained several market applications as excipients in drug and vaccine formulations. They are very appealing platforms for the development of therapeutic applications and new CD-based systems are continuously proposed. In this frame easily prepared CD polymers frequently outstand the performance of the corresponding CD monomers. Nevertheless, application of new CDs as drug or delivery system in the clinics does not take off in spite of their most promising features. This is mainly due to a lack in transfer of knowledge between the academic world and the private sector focusing on CD for biomedical applications. The consortium formed by a multidisciplinary team, all with interest in CD and nanomedicines, accepts the challenge to bring CD-based systems closer to clinical application. To reach this goal an intense secondment scheme for young and experienced researchers is envisaged with activities that are all contributing to the scientific pursuit of CD progress. Activities focus on the design of sustainable syntheses of new CD, full characterization of new functionalized CD, the preparation of CD delivery systems for therapeutics and the study of the biological behavior of the CD-based nanomedicines in 2D and 3D models. The teams will embrace, already from the design stage, the production standards affording compliance with GMP for medicine development and prefer strategic approaches in line with the EU 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The consortium features 11 partners with 4 coming from the private sector. Two of them hold concrete interest in the exploitation of research results as their core business focuses on CD for biomedical applications. This intersectoral and interdisciplinary team will foster new applications of CD-based systems as drugs, delivery systems or sensors and participating staff will enrich their profile with scientific and soft skills that are easily transferred to other research topics or sectors.

Original text from CORDIS.

Participants

  • CONSIGLIO NAZIONALE DELLE RICERCHE · RomaCoordinatorItaly
  • AGENCIA ESTATAL CONSEJO SUPERIOR DE INVESTIGACIONES CIENTIFICAS · MadridSpain
  • CARBOHYDE ZARTKORUEN MUKODO RESZVENYTARSASAG · BudapestHungary
  • CELLDYNAMICS ISRL · IMOLAItaly
  • CYCLARITY THERAPEUTICS INC · NOVATOUnited States
  • EOTVOS LORAND TUDOMANYEGYETEM · BudapestHungary
  • FUNDACION DE INVESTIGACION DE LA UNIVERSIDAD DE SEVILLA · SEVILLASpain
  • HACETTEPE UNIVERSITESI · Cankaya AnkaraTürkiye
  • KATHOLIEKE UNIVERSITEIT LEUVEN · LeuvenBelgium
  • MD USE INNOVATIONS SL · SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELASpain
  • TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY DUBLIN · DublinIreland
  • UNIVERSIDAD DE BUENOS AIRES · Buenos AiresArgentina
  • UNIVERSIDAD DE SEVILLA · SevillaSpain

Links

Data: CORDIS, © European Union