A new dimension for cell culture

The system developed by QGel allows for new tests of anti-cancer medication and novel experimentation in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. Cancer cells and stem cells can now be cultivated in 3 dimensions to serve in various experiments to great advantage for researchers. This matrix, commercialized by the start-up QGel, which is based in the scientific park at Ecublens, offers the cells a similar environment to a living organism and is adaptable to the needs of the researcher. The new company received the Vigier Prize on Thursday, which comes with a cash sum of 100,000 francs. The basic substance resembles a gel, but it is in fact a biocompatible and biodegradable polymer to which different bioactive components such as collagen or growth factors can be added. This substance, produced in Jura, is presented as a small flask containing dehydrated gel to which water must be added. One can then reproduce the extracellular matrix in which cells live inside organisms.