Gum cell injection could ease knee arthritis pain
NCT ID NCT06690710
First seen Jun 26, 2026 · Last updated Jun 26, 2026
Summary
This early study tests a single injection of cells made from donor gum tissue into the knee joint of 15 people with knee osteoarthritis. The main goal is to see if it is safe, but researchers will also check for pain relief and better knee function. The cells have shown anti-inflammatory and cartilage-repair effects in animals.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- allogeneic engineered gingival fibroblasts (aeGF) – donor gum cells
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could point toward a new treatment that reduces pain and inflammation and possibly repairs cartilage in knee osteoarthritis.
- What could go wrong
- This is a very early, small Phase 1 trial with only 15 people, so safety and any benefit are uncertain. The cells are from donors, so immune reactions or lack of effect are possible risks.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Phase 1
The first testing in people. Mainly checks safety and dose, usually in a small group.
- Participants
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About 15 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Aug 2025
- Expected to finish
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Feb 2028
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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A company
The lead sponsor is a pharmaceutical, biotech, or medical-device company.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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40 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion criteria: 1. Willing and able to provide informed consent; 2. Male or female participants aged ≥40 years; 3. Evidence of OA in the medial tibiofemoral joint (MTJ) as follows: * Clinical - knee pain; * Radiological - Kellgren-Lawrence: 1. Grade 2 - definite osteophytes, possible joint space narrowing (JSN), or; 2. Grade 3 - moderate osteophytes, definite JSN, some sclerosis, possible bone-end deformity (Altman et al., 1986; Kellgren et al., 1957; Kohn et al., 2016). 3. Minimal joint space width (JSW) of 2.5 mm on knee X-ray (OARSI 1 or 2); 4. Score ≥3 on visual analogue scale (VAS) (0-10 range) for pain at Screening. Exclusion Criteria: 1. Grade 0, 1 or 4 on the Kellgren-Lawrence grading scale for the target knee: * Grade 0: No osteophyte or JSN; * Grade 1: Doubtful JSN and possible osteophytic lipping; * Grade 4: Large osteophytes, 'bone-on-bone' JSN, severe sclerosis, and definite deformity of bone ends; 2. Severe malalignment of \>10° varus or valgus. 3. OA secondary to joint dysplasia, aseptic osteonecrosis, acromegaly, Paget's disease, Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, Gaucher's disease, Stickler's syndrome, joint infection, haemophilia, haemochromatosis, calcium pyrophosphate deposition disease, neuropathic arthropathy, trauma, rheumatoid arthritis, gout, psoriatic arthritis, autoimmune arthritis or spondylitis; 4. Receipt of any investigational medicinal product (IMP) or any experimental therapeutic procedure in the 3 months or 5 half-lives before Screening, whichever is longer; 5. Taking corticosteroids or any immunosuppressants, e.g., cyclosporine, prior to Screening; 6. IA treatment with steroids or hyaluronic acid derivatives in the 3 months before Day 1; 7. Planned major surgery, e.g., joint replacement, within 2 months after IA injection; 8. Previous surgery on the target knee including diagnostic arthroscopy; 9. Lesions at the planned injection site that would present a contraindication to local injection of the study drug, e.g., open wounds, psoriatic lesions or infections of the skin; 10. Any known active infection; 11. Clinically significant abnormal haematology or biochemistry values (platelets, haemoglobin, white blood cells, alkaline phosphatase, AST, ALT, blood creatinine, bilirubin) or coagulation (PT, PTT) at Screening; 12. Positive result for HTLV, HIV, Hepatitis B or C; 13. Hypersensitivity to any of the IMP components or excipients; 14. History of sarcoma; 15. History of cancer within five years, except treated basal cell and squamous cell carcinoma of the skin; 16. Women of child-bearing potential, i.e., not post-menopausal (see Section 8.4.5) 17. Women who are pregnant or breastfeeding; 18. Current drug or alcohol abuse; 19. Contraindication to receiving a gadolinium contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the target knee (metallic implants, claustrophobia, previous anaphylactic reaction to gadolinium, eGFR1 \<30 mL/min/1.73 m2, acutely deteriorating renal function) or is unwilling to have MRI performed; 20. Participants with subchondral insufficiency fracture, osteonecrosis, acute or subacute fracture, acute bone contusion, pathologic fracture, stress fracture, fragmentation of articular bone, bone or soft tissue tumour, bone marrow infiltration, posterior meniscal root tear, rheumatoid arthritis, gout based on X-ray or MRI reading; 21. Participants who, in the Investigator's opinion, are unsuitable or unlikely to comply with the study procedures.
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Genom att skicka in godkänner du våra Användarvillkor
Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre, Oxford)
RECRUITINGOxford, OX3 7LD, United Kingdom
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