Short Bio
Masato Sato is a professor of Department Orthopaedic Surgery, Tokai University School of Medicine, and a director of Center for Musculoskeletal innovative Research and Advancement (C-MiRA), Tokai University Graduate School. He is board members of The Japanese Orthopaedic Association, The Japanese Society of Regenerative Medicine, The Japanese Society of Cartilage Metabolism, Orthopaedic Research Society, International Cartilage Regeneration and Joint Preservation Society, and so on.
Earned a medical degree from National Defense Medical College in 1991 and joined the department of Orthopaedic Surgery, NDMC, and engaged in Self Defense Force Hospitals. Started out as Assistant Professor, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Tokai University School of Medicine in 2003; Associate Professor, in 2007; and Professor, in 2013.
His research field is the cartilage regeneration using multidisciplinary approach such as tissue engineering, cell sheet technology and noninvasive mechanical evaluation. Of special note is that the autologous cell sheet transplantation for osteoarthritis of the knee (OAK) has been approved as an Advanced Medical Care in Japan. He has also achieved the transplantations of allogeneic cell sheets derived from polyductyly tissue to the patients of OAK, and planned to perform clinical trials with companies.
Method of Cartilage Regeneration Using Cell Sheet Technology
Osteoarthritis of the knee (OAK) is a progressive and debilitating disease affecting millions, however, effective treatment to reverse joint damage and to restore articular cartilage is still in development. We completed the clinical study of autologous chondrocyte sheets transplantation to the patients of OAK, and reported safety and efficacy associated with this study. The ministry of Health Labour and Welfare approved this treatment as the Advanced Medical Care which provide patients with adaptation of national health insurance in Japan. Patients can be treated with autologous chondrocyte sheets transplantation if patients pay extra cost. On the other hand, the most useful characteristic of cartilage is immunotolerance, so the use of allogeneic chondrocyte sheets derived from surgical sample of polydactyly patients is in a rational manner. We are currently conducting a clinical study involving the allogeneic transplantation of polydactyly-derived chondrocyte sheets with the aim of treating patients with OAK. In my presentation, I will introduce our project to overcome OAK using regenerative medicine.