The Bone Tissue Engineering Research Laboratory headed by Dr. Farrell and Dr. Lolli performs basic and translational research with the main aim of investigating how to modulate new bone formation and the various cellular interactions that occur during this process. The laboratory is part of the Connective Tissue Repair group at Erasmus MC.
The research is mainly focused on the process of endochondral ossification as a promising avenue for the generation of clinically relevant quantities of bone tissue to repair large bone defects. Additionally, the experimental model of endochondral ossification is exploited to investigate the role of host immune cells during bone tissue repair and the development of cancer metastasis in the bone niche. The group has specific expertise in 3D cell (co-)cultures and use of scaffolds, in vivo generation of tissue engineered bone, neovascularisation and osteoimmunology.
NANO-SCORES wants to revolutionize the treatment of knee osteochondral lesions, a particular kind of defect that affects cartilage and the underlying bone tissue. This objective will be achieved by developing new nano-strategies exploiting recent developments…
Cartilage and bone are inextricably linked during development, pathology and repair. During skeletal development most bones of the body are formed via a cartilage intermediate through the process of endochondral ossification. In the context of bone healing,…
Deciphering bone formation to model diseases: towards a new generation of in vitro bone modelsIn this project, we propose a radically new strategy to develop an urgently needed in vitro model of bone formation. Musculoskeletal diseases are commonly associated…
Bone metastasis “in a dish”: engineering vascularised bone in vitro to model metastatic breast cancer; BoneMeND With this new partnership, Erasmus MC, University of Twente and the company React4life will join forces to fulfill the ambitious aim of…
BACKGROUND Breast cancer hits 1 woman in 8, and its most common metastatic site is the bone (70%). A major hurdle to overcome breast cancer mortality is the lack of understanding of the dynamics leading to the spread of breast cancer cells to the bone. OUR…
Understanding early processes in osteoarthritis: paving the way for novel drugs (HypOA) Osteoarthritis is a disease of the locomotor system characterised by degeneration of cartilage and underlying bone. Recent publications have indicated changes…
Andrea Lolli received an ENW-XS grant from NWO Science domain to work on the development of new in vitro models of bone formation. The Board of NWO Domain Science has awarded sixteen applications in the…
We are glad to share that we received a TKI-LSH grant from Health~Holland for our new project BoneMeND Bone metastasis “in a dish”: engineering vascularised bone in vitro to model metastatic breast…