"Scalable Bioprocess for the Production of High-quality hiPSC-derived Cardiomyocytes" Selected as Key Innovation
iBET’s innovative work performed within the BRAVƎ European Consortium has been highlighted by the European Commission’s Innovation Radar, identifying our “Scalable bioprocess for the production of high-quality hiPSC-derived cardiomyocytes” as a key innovation.
This innovation was classified as “Tech Ready”, acknowledging technologies that are progressing on the technology development process, such as pilots or prototypes, and show a strong potential for future translational and clinical applications.
The BRAVƎ project set out to develop a personalized biological ventricular assist device (BioVAD). This patient-tailored regenerative therapy aims to offer a one-time treatment for ischemic heart disease, reducing long-term burden on healthcare systems while improving patients’ quality of life.
hiPSC-derived cardiomyocytes produced in controlled bioreactor system.
Within the project, iBET developed a robust, scalable, and cost-effective bioprocess that enables the billion-scale expansion of functional hiPSC-derived cardiomyocytes in controlled bioreactor systems, supported by optimized dissolved oxygen control and continuous Wnt pathway modulation. This breakthrough enables the delivery of clinically-relevant cell numbers with consistent quality and functionality, enables reproducible large-scale manufacturing under controlled conditions and reduces production costs while maintaining cell quality attributes.
Moreover, the same manufacturing strategy can be leveraged for future applications in preclinical disease modeling, drug screening, and cardiotoxicity assessment.
Launched in 2020 and finalized in June 2025, the BRAVƎ project united 14 European partners (coordinated by Clinica Universidad de Navarra) and received over 8 million euros by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 framework. The project successfully addressed all its major objectives, including the design and fabrication of BioVAD prototypes at the scale required for translation, using Melt Electrowriting (MEW)-printed scaffolds combined with hiPSC-derived cardiac cells, and established essential technological and regulatory groundwork that will guide future preclinical and clinical pathways.
Learn more about the BRAVƎ project here and the EU’s Innovation Radar here.
