For Beth Lindborg and Timothy O’Brien, cartilage restoration is a personal mission: Lindborg’s mother had both knees replaced and O’Brien himself is facing osteoarthritis. Working together in stem cell research at the University of Minnesota, the duo, along with co-founder Amanda Vegoe, discovered that growing organoids, a tissue culture derived from stem cells, can result in the formation of cartilage cells. They established Minneapolis-based Sarcio in 2017, intending to develop a disease-modifying therapeutic for people with osteoarthritis; currently, treatments are limited to pain management. Sarcio is still an early-stage venture and is working toward FDA approval. Its long-term goal is to use the regenerative treatment to benefit the 30 million-plus individuals living with this debilitating condition.

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