IFF to unveil breakthrough alginate technologies for biomedical innovation at WBC and TERMIS

NEW YORK — May 27, 2024 — IFF (NYSE: IFF), a global leader in food and beverage, home and personal care and health will unveil groundbreaking study results at upcoming major biomedical conferences. These results highlight how IFF Pharma Solutions NovaMatrix® portfolio of ultrapure alginate biopolymers could revolutionize regenerative medicine and 3D cell culture applications. At the 12th World Biomaterials Congress (WBC), IFF Pharma Solutions will showcase a first-of-its-kind alginate hydrogel system that self-gels, offering a minimally invasive way to deliver therapeutics. The company will then reveal how its unique porous alginate foam scaffolds can be utilized for 3D cell culture at the TERMIS World Congress.

Breakthrough alginate hydrogel system in the spotlight at WBC

At WBC in Daegu, South Korea, May 26-31, booth #74, visitors will learn how IFF is breaking boundaries in the biotech space with novel alginate biopolymer technologies. During a poster session on May 28 at 06:00 PM (Korean standard time), Caroline Cooreman, global business development & product manager, Biotechnology, IFF Pharma Solutions, will reveal groundbreaking alginate hydrogel system that self-gels within minutes after injection. This is enabled by combining a calcium alginate suspension with soluble sodium alginate. The resulting self-gelling hydrogel system could transform regenerative medicine by providing a minimally invasive alternative to surgical implantation procedures for delivering therapeutic cells, proteins, or drugs.

"Our revolutionary self-gelling technology is just one aspect of our alginate innovation that we’re illuminating at WBC," said Caroline Cooreman. "Through our unmatched polymer expertise and rigorous research, we understand how to tailor the viscosity and strength of our alginate gels by selecting specific alginate monomer compositions and molecular weights. This allows us to create custom gels optimized for our customers' unique formulation needs."

Pioneering alginate foam scaffolds to be featured at TERMIS

IFF will continue its alginate innovation showcase just weeks later at the 7th TERMIS World Congress in Seattle, Washington, June 25-28. Mark Dreibelbis, senior scientist, IFF Pharma Solutions, will reveal pioneering macro-porous alginate foam scaffolds for 3D cell culture on Wednesday June 26, at 7:05 PM PDT in Hall 4A with a follow-up on Thursday, June 27, at 6:15 PM PDT in Hall 4A. The presentation titled, Macroporous Alginate Foam Scaffolds for 3D Cell Growth will be part of the theater and poster sessions at the conference.

Leveraging its deep expertise in alginates and customization capabilities, IFF has tuned the foam scaffolds to achieve 3D culture conditions for various cell types based on customer needs. By offering practical methods for cell seeding and release, the alginate foams offer a non-animal-based cell culture environment which could support tissue engineering and therapeutic screening applications.

“As the only supplier of ultrapure and sterile alginates, we’re excited about how our industry leading NovaMatrix® portfolio is propelling the biotech field forward,” added Caroline. “The latest research we’re revealing at WBC and TERMIS will provide our customers with transformative solutions for next-generation biotherapeutics – from controlled hydrogel technologies to advanced 3D cell culture platforms. Looking ahead, we will continue to actively research and advance the impact that our high-quality alginate polymers can bring to further support our customers in the biomedical industry.”

For more information about IFF’s industry-leading portfolio of ultrapure NovaMatrix® biopolymers, visit IFF Pharma Solutions and stop by at either of IFF’s upcoming events or tune in to our June 5 webinar, “Advancing cell therapy: innovations in polymer-based encapsulation and delivery”. Register here.