EngineLife: A Thai Startup Using Thai Silk to Create Medical Innovations
- Industry: Medical
- Research Field: Biomedical engineering
- Product / Service: SilkLife, silk fibroin solution from Thai silk
About EngineLife
EngineLife is a Thai startup that develops cutting-edge medical innovations using Thai silk research. EngineLife was founded by two Chulalongkorn University lecturers, Associate Professor Dr. Juthamas Ratanavaraporn and Dr. Saran Keeratihattayakorn. Dr. Juthamas has been researching the medical application of Thai silk for over 17 years, and has published many research papers and academic articles on her work, but none of them have been utilized in public. She discussed her desire to create an innovation that could be used to benefit the public with Dr. Saran, who later became the co-founder and CTO of EngineLife. When Chulalongkorn University began to support the establishment of spin-off companies, through CU Enterprise, EngineLife was founded in 2020 with the vision “Engineer Your Life” and the goals of innovating for healthier and longer life, as well as emphasizing the role of universities in Thailand’s effort on the sustainable development goals.
These goals are depicted in the name of the company: “Engine” came from the company’s solution that acts as the driving force, and “Life” is emphasizing the goal of the company to drive more growth in health science with know-how from research on Thai silk in biomedical engineering. EngineLife is aiming to use its flagship product “SilkLife” to revolutionize the silk industry and the field of medicine. The vision of EngineLife is connected by three key elements: the local wisdom of Thai sericulture, the medical industry as the market, and innovation from research, turned to be commercialized.
Turning Two Decades of Research on Thai Silk into Medical Solutions
SilkLife, a silk fibroin solution, is a versatile material that can be used in a variety of applications in tissue engineering, medical applications, beauty, and consumer healthcare.
In tissue engineering, SilkLife can be used as a scaffold to support cell growth and differentiation, which allows for the engineering of new tissues. In medical applications, it can be used in drug delivery systems to ensure that drugs are released in a controlled and sustained manner. In beauty products, it can be used to improve the effectiveness of skincare formulations. Lastly, in consumer healthcare, SilkLife’s unique gelation properties and encapsulation abilities make it a breakthrough in transdermal healthcare solutions, as this facilitates the administration of diverse active ingredients through the skin.
EngineLife’s SilkLife product is now being used by partners to develop transdermal patches and injectable hydrogels for the sustained release of cells, vaccines, drugs (e.g., steroids and antibiotics), and herbs (CBD, curcumin) for the treatment of osteoarthritis, insomnia, wounds, and skin diseases.
Catalyst for the Thai Medical Industry and Sustainable Growth
EngineLife’s solution covers the entire supply chain of using silk, from the production of silkworms to the manufacturing of medical products. In the upstream of the Thai silk supply chain, EngineLife helps develop the advanced practice of organic sericulture. In the midstream, SilkLife, the silk fibroin solution extraction process, is expanding to be used in various industries that are related to health science. Lastly, downstream of the silk supply chain, the company provides strategic partnerships, working on R&D to help businesses tap into wide-ranged markets, from healthcare and cosmetics to veterinary.
The goal is to use silk to develop innovative medical products that can improve the lives of people. Because Thai silk has a number of advantages for medical applications, including: biodegradability, which means that silk can be broken down by the body without causing any harm, biocompatibility, meaning that it is safe for human use, and adjustability, meaning that silk can be modified to have a variety of properties, such as strength, flexibility, and degradability. These silk fibroin solution technologies are becoming advanced therapeutic medicine that can enhance safety and efficiency of treatment and drug usage.
Therefore, EngineLife has the potential to make a significant impact on the medical field. The company’s work is helping to advance the development of new medical products and other silk-based innovation in diverse industries.
What’s next at EngineLife ?
In July 2023, Chulalongkorn University, the Queen Sirikit Department of Sericulture, Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, and EngineLife signed an MOU to extend their collaboration. This MOU will allow EngineLife to further develop the knowledge that QSDS has continuously supplied for commercial use of Thai silk. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Juthamas Ratanavaraporn stated, “The cooperation has
been in existence for more than 17 years. This MOU will result in continuous collaboration, allowing the body of knowledge that QSDS has continuously supplied to Chulalongkorn University to be further developed for commercial use.”
The plans outlined in this MOU will benefit the Thai silk industry, the university’s knowledge base, the growth of EngineLife as a spin-off company, and the public in a number of ways. For example, the controlled-environment sericulture plant and organic mulberry farm will be used to develop the production of high-graded Thai silk cocoons that are more suitable for medical use. The silk fibroin solution will be extracted from organic cocoons in an ISO13485-certified GMP plant. EngineLife’s expert and R&D team will then develop the product to match the customers’ needs.
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