Implants Impacting Lives: Medoja developing customized implants using novel biomaterials

Medoja was founded in 2020 by the fantastic four to develop customized implants using novel biomaterials for dental and orthopaedic applications.

In a Nutshell

Founded in 2020, Medoja Health Private Limited is a healthcare company focussing on 3D printing of patient specific customized implants using novel biomaterials, and manufacturing of biomaterials from natural sources for 3D printing and other industrial applications. Medoja has developed a unique bone graft material (MH-BCA) for dental and orthopaedic applications with the help of BIRAC Biotechnology Ignition Grant (BIG). The material, comparable to a gold standard implant, has angiogenesis and osteo-induction properties, which are lacking in the implants available in the market. The material can be 3D printed in a customized form, as per the CT/MRI data of the patient. Once this technology reaches the market, it can compete with existing metal implants and can relieve the patient from the economic as well as the physical woes involved when implanted with metal implants. Medoja also manufactures non-regulated 3D printed medical models and surgical guides for medical colleges.

Brains behind this

Let’s see what’s in store, when we get to meet this team of four. Meet the brains behind this wonderful start-up.

• Uday Kiran Roopavath, Founder Director and CEO, with overall 3+ years post-PhD experience in project management by managing funds from BIRAC as well as being COO at NIPER incubation center.
• Yearla Srinivasa Rao, Director and COO, with overall 7+ years of post-PhD industrial experience in nanotechnology, who has managed project activities from BIRAC and DBT along with working in a multi-disciplinary environment to manage sales, marketing and business development teams.
• S.N. Rath, Director, with 15+ years of experience in new biomaterials development, and valued experience as a professor at IIT Hyderabad for developing new class of bio-materials.
• Vidya Sagar, Director, with 15+ years of experience in dental clinical practice at KIMS.

With a vision of translating academic research to industry with innovation in regenerative medicine and 3D printing we started our entrepreneurial journey. Medoja aim is to create social impact in health care by making the technology affordable and easily accessible to everyone. We believe 3D printing is the new industrial revolution and has potential to change future medicine by functioning as a tool to bring products from bench to body.
– Dr. Uday Kiran, Founder and CEO

The Before and The After

One of the most crucial factors in prognosis of ailments using bone fillers and bone grafts to cure periodontal bone loss is the growth of new blood vessels in implanted areas. Most of the grafts and fillings fail to regenerate the complete bone in the defect area failing to cure the patient completely. The failure of the implanted bone grafts forces the patients suffering from periodontal diseases to undergo a secondary surgery. The main reason for the failure of most of the bone grafts available in the current market, is due to incomplete angiogenesis. Angiogenesis is the most important phenomenon to transport growth factors to the regenerating site. Opting a secondary surgery is a more painful and expensive process causing mental fatigue among patients with periodontal diseases. This project focuses mainly on developing granules as bone fillers for filling minor periodontal bone loss and 3D printed custom patient specific scaffolds for major periodontal bone defects.

Medoja is envisioning to play a pivotal role in manufacturing patient matching implants using novel biomaterials through 3D printing technology through Make in India initiative.
– Dr. Yearla Srinivasa Rao, Chief Operating Officer

Technology:

Most of the 3D printable materials used in healthcare are polymers or metals, where biocompatibility is a huge challenge. Medoja has developed a biocompatible gold standard bio-ceramic which can be directly implanted after 3D printing, inside the patient as per their requirements. This biomaterial can also be coated onto existing metal implants to improve the biocompatibility. The inherent material properties such as its osteo-inductive and angio-inductive nature, as well as it being easily 3D printable are the key differentiators that make this fabricated implant a gold standard bone implant.

Bone defects are filled with ceramic granules traditionally in many cases, without considering the shape fidelity to the defect or providing vascular supply. Medoja addressed this by using ceramic composition which can be 3D printable to address shape fidelity and generating vascular supply to it.
– Dr. Subha N Rath, Technical Director

Medoja has developed a unique bone graft material (MH-BCA) for dental and orthopaedic applications. With the help of this technology, Medoja can produce granules for deep and shallow dental filling, powder for implant coating, in addition to 3D printed parts for bone reconstructive surgeries, bone trauma, osteosarcoma, and congenital anomaly. This technology has been developed with the aid from the BIRAC Biotechnology Ignition Grant. The 3D manufactured parts can be customized as per patient’s specific requirements and has angiogenesis and osteo-induction properties, which are lacking in the implants available in the market. This technology, upon reaching the market can easily compete with existing metal implants and relieve the patient from the strain on the purse as well as pain involved when implanted with metal implants. This technology also enables Medoja to manufacture non-regulated 3D printed medical models and surgical guides for medical colleges.

3D Printing is bound to grow exponentially in all branches of medical sciences and certainly in oral sciences. Medoja is currently focusing & working on developing 3D printable biomaterials that can customize and replace bone tissues lost due to various diseases or trauma.
– Dr. Viday Sagar Sisinty, Clinical Director

AM Ventures Asks

Along with the Technological innovations, it is important for start-ups to understand how their innovation is addressing the world’s biggest Environmental, Social and Governance Challenges. AM Ventures, our co-collaborator for this AM start-up series, poses a question to Medoja on their contribution to the world’s biggest ESG challenges.

There is high prevalence of periodontal disease amongst the Indian population for almost 50-60% of the total dental diseases. Very few Indian companies are present in the market with quality bone grafts. International players do exist but their costs are exorbitant and availability is scarce. With very few players available in the current global markets who are working and developing products for bone regeneration using 3D printing, the successful implementation of the above idea might be a breakthrough in current world regenerative medicine market.

Funding Facts

Medoja had received support through BIG (Biotechnology Ignition Grant) from BIRAC under Call 14 in the year 2019. The technology is now in TRL 7 level and has completed validation with pre-clinical trials. Phase 1 clinical trials are ongoing and the technology will be available in the market by the end of 2023.

They seek:

Get associated with business mentors and strategic investors so as to raise investment for setting up a manufacturing unit for industrial scale production of 3D printable biomaterials.

Contact Details

Website: www.medoja.com
Email: info.medoja@gmail.com
Contact: 9493329941, 8187874583

Disclaimer: This AM Chronicle Startup series is powered by AM Ventures and companies mentioned in the series are not necessarily funded or supported by AM Ventures directly, unless otherwise mentioned.