San Diego, CA, April 13, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Scripps Health has received $12.7 million in grant funding from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) to conduct preclinical studies and planning activities for research that will transform stem cells into tissue that can be surgically implanted to repair some types of knee injuries.
The funding will support laboratory-based tissue engineering and cartilage and bone injury repair surgeries in animal models, led by investigators at the Shiley Center for Orthopaedic Research and Education (SCORE) at Scripps Clinic on Torrey Pines Mesa. SCORE researchers aim to demonstrate that surgically implanting the engineered, scaffold-free tissue to repair such injuries in animal models is safe and effective.
At the end of the five-year grant period, researchers plan to submit an investigational new drug or biological product (IND) application with the Food and Drug Administration. If the application is approved, Scripps could begin clinical trials of this cell-based therapy in humans.
The grant will also support related planning initiatives required by the FDA, such as regulatory work to prepare for the IND application and development of clinical protocols for potential clinical trials with humans. Funding will also aid creation of a plan required by CIRM to address patient access and affordability of the treatment for humans.
Established in 2004 when California voters approved Proposition 71, CIRM is a state-funded organization that provides grant awards to support and accelerate promising stem cell research opportunities geared toward patients with unmet medical needs.
“A biological implant that can successfully treat cartilage and bone defects of the knee would resolve the limited availability of donor graft tissue and has the potential to delay and eventually eliminate the need for joint replacement,” said Darryl D’Lima, M.D., Ph.D., director of orthopedic research at Scripps Health and the study’s lead investigator.
The new approach is intended to particularly benefit patients with injuries of the knee cartilage and underlying bone that are larger than 2 square centimeters. One current option for such injuries is osteochondral allograft transplant surgery. In this procedure, the surgeon removes a coin-shaped cylinder of damaged cartilage and underlying bone and replaces it with a section of healthy cartilage and bone from a deceased donor. Scripps has been at the forefront of performing osteochondral allograft transplant surgeries under the leadership of Scripps Clinic orthopedic surgeon William Bugbee, M.D. But even with its success, there are limitations, such as availability of cadaveric tissue to transplant and challenges with tissue preservation.
Another current option for treating larger cartilage and bone defects of the knee includes a cell-based therapy that uses the patient’s own cartilage cells. But this approach requires two separate surgeries and involves a scaffold-based implant embedded with the patient’s own cartilage cells. These cells are not ideal for regrowing cartilage, due to slow growth and poor metabolism.
Research activities under the new $12.7 million CIRM grant will build on earlier foundational work at SCORE. Scripps senior staff scientist Shawn Grogan, Ph.D., developed the technology to generate scaffold-free cartilage and bone tissue in the lab by producing cellular spheroids (3D clusters of cells) from a specific stem cell source (mesenchymal stem cells), which fused together to form tissue. Researchers then implanted these lab-grown tissues into osteoarthritic tissue samples. The scaffold-free implants effectively repaired the defects and structurally integrated with the injured tissues.
Scaffold-free tissue engineering differs from the more conventional method, in which transformed stem cells are embedded into a scaffold of fibers and grown into tissue. The new technique avoids limitations associated with scaffolds, such as poor integration and compatibility with host tissue. Scaffold-free tissue closely mimics cells in developing native tissue and have high potential for healing.
According to a report in the peer-reviewed medical journal Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research, cartilage injuries of the knee affect approximately 900,000 people annually in the United States. They also result in more than 200,000 surgical procedures, often involving repair of cartilage and underlying bone.
While research under the CIRM grant is focused on treating cartilage and bone damage in the knee, these injuries can also occur in joints such as the ankle, elbow, shoulder and hip. These conditions can be precursors to the more widespread joint disease, osteoarthritis.
In addition to Dr. D’Lima, the research team at Scripps Health includes Shawn Grogan, Ph.D.; Steven Copp, M.D., medical director of the musculoskeletal service line at Scripps Health; Samantha Bagsic, Ph.D., biostatistician; and Emily Martin and Grant Stinebaugh, project managers. Dr. Bugbee, along with Scripps Clinic orthopedic surgeons Heinz Hoenecke, M.D. and Tim Wang, M.D., will lead the clinical aspects of the study, including design of the surgical procedure to be used on animal models. Martin Lotz, Ph.D., a renowned osteoarthritis researcher and professor in the department of molecular and cellular biology at Scripps Research, will serve as a consulting team member.
Clinical trials proposed in the IND will be designed and conducted by Scripps Clinical Research Services, led by its chief research officer, Addie Fortmann, Ph.D.
SCORE at Scripps Clinic was established by founding director Clifford Colwell, M.D. Scientists and physicians at the center focus on breakthrough orthopedic research and treatments, including cartilage allografts; cartilage, bone and tendon tissue engineering; stem cell research; smart joint replacement implants and more.
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Founded in 1924 by philanthropist Ellen Browning Scripps, Scripps Health is a nonprofit integrated health care delivery system based in San Diego, Calif. Scripps treats more than 600,000 patients annually through the dedication of more than 3,500 affiliated physicians and nearly 18,000 employees among its five acute-care hospital campuses, more than 70 outpatient and specialty locations, and hundreds of affiliated physician offices throughout the region.
Recognized as a leader in disease and injury prevention, diagnosis and treatment, Scripps is also at the forefront of clinical research and is the only health system in the region with two level 1 trauma centers. With highly respected graduate medical education programs at all five hospital campuses, Scripps is a longstanding member of the Association of American Medical Colleges. Scripps has been ranked seven times as one of the nation’s best health care systems by Premier. Its hospitals are consistently ranked by U.S. News & World Report among the nation’s best, and Scripps is recognized by the Advisory Board, Fortune and Working Mother magazine as one of the best places in the nation to work. More information can be found at www.scripps.org.
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Steve Carpowich Scripps Health 858-312-0328 carpowich.stephen@scrippshealth.org