A Case professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering is the lead researcher on a nearly $50 million project aimed at developing life-changing treatments for osteoarthritis, the most common form of arthritis.

Ozan Akkus, PhD ’00, will oversee a multi-university team of researchers as they try to engineer “live” replacement joints to treat a painfully debilitating disease.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in March awarded the project an initial $20.4 million through its Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H). Plans include a second, $27.3 million phase if targets are met.

“We are honored to receive this significant ARPA-H award. It speaks to the strength of our research enterprise and our ability to innovate in ways that change lives,” University President Eric W. Kaler said in a statement.

Researchers hope to help the human body repair its own joints. According to a press release, 40 patients would have knee replacements with “live joints,” or biocompatible bone and cartilage grown from human cells that can restore natural function. The goal is to “scale up” treatments and make them available worldwide.

Akkus, who earned his doctorate in mechanical engineering at the Case School of Engineering, is the Kent Hale Smith Professor of Engineering and director of the school’s Tissue Fabrication and Mechanobiology Lab. He was elected to the National Academy of Inventors in 2023.

A specialist in tissue engineering, Akkus will lead a team that includes researchers from CWRU and the universities of Ohio State, Colorado State, Rice and Washington State. Other partners include University Hospitals, the Cleveland VA Medical Center, Boston biotech firm Sapphiros AI Bio and Massachusetts General Hospital.

The project is called OMEGA: Orchestrating Multifaceted Engineering for Growing Artificial Joints.

Venkataramanan “Ragu” Balakrishnan, the Charles H. Phipps Dean of the Case School of Engineering, sees research that taps the strengths of Case.

“The OMEGA team is a shining example of how the rich and vibrant health ecosystem in Cleveland enables us to collaborate with partners across the nation to address critical healthcare challenges and improve outcomes,” he said.