Medicine by Design is a strategic hub where scientists, engineers and clinicians converge to conceive and translate regenerative medicine approaches to transforming human health. Our community of researchers is from the University of Toronto and its affiliated hospitals, and we also work with the biotechnology industry, government and not-for-profit partners to integrate discovery and translation with biomanufacturing and clinical implementation.

WHAT IS MEDICINE BY DESIGN?   |   OUR KEY INITIATIVES   |   OUR STRATEGIC VISION

What is Medicine by Design?

Medicine by Design is a bold initiative that was established in 2015, through an unprecedented investment of $114-million from the Canada First Research Excellence Fund (CFREF). Since its inception, Medicine by Design has sharpened the peaks of excellence and pushed the frontiers of regenerative medicine through large-scale investments in transformative, interdisciplinary research and translation projects and through the recruitment of world-class faculty and trainees.

By fostering convergence across leading centres in Toronto and supporting high-risk/high-reward research, Medicine by Design has built on the city’s legacy in regenerative medicine — from the discovery of stem cells to the cloning of T-cell receptor genes—to solidify the field as one of the most prolific areas of research across the Toronto Academic Health Sciences Network (TAHSN), which includes the University of Toronto and its affiliated hospitals.

What is regenerative medicine?

Regenerative medicine uses stem cells to replace diseased tissues and organs, creating therapies in which cells are the biological product. Regenerative medicine can also mean triggering stem cells that are already present in the human body to repair damaged tissues or to modulate immune responses. Increasingly, regenerative medicine researchers are using a stem cell lens to identify critical interactions or defects that can lead to disease, paving the way for new approaches to preventing disease before it starts.

What are living therapies?

Living therapies are therapeutic products that build on a regenerative medicine approach to disease treatment and/or prevention and are inclusive of cell therapy, gene therapy as well as products that promote endogenous repair (e.g. biomaterials, small molecules, in vivo gene editing).