A team of researchers from The University of Manchester will help “reveal fundamental rules of life” and, potentially, find improved treatments for diseases such as osteoarthritis and healing wounds.

The team, from the Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health (FBMH) and led by Principal Investigator, Professor Karl Kadler, have been awarded £4.6 million from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC to research the extracellular matrix structure (ECM).

The ECM is a three-dimensional network of extracellular macromolecules, such as collagen, enzymes, and glycoproteins, that provide structural and biochemical support of surrounding cells.

Cells, the fundamental building block of living organisms, rely on an extracellular matrix to provide structure and protect them from environmental forces and are essential for connective tissues such as skin, tendon and cartilage.

This research aims to define the mechanisms that temporally regulate collagen secretion and extracellular matrix structure in the short term across a circadian cycle and, in the long term, across the life course.

Simply put, decoding the how the matrix is maintained and repaired throughout a healthy life course, would potentially improve treatment for wound healing and age-related diseases like osteoarthritis.