Hot paper: Review of tissue adhesives

All Biomaterials Science content is free until the end of 2014!

Wound closure has traditionally been performed using surgical sutures, staples or clips. These products are not always the most desirable solution especially for suturing friable tissues such as internal organs. Tissues adhesives appear to be an ideal alternative to improve wound healing and overcome fluid leakage and the possibility of additional trauma to the wound sometimes caused by these traditional products.

This Review by Pêgo, Wang and colleagues, covers the recent progress in synthetic/semi-synthetic adhesives and biomimetic adhesives that could be useful for future biomedical applications. They discuss the mechanisms behind the adhesive performances as well as their advantages and disadvantages.

Taking tissue adhesives to the future: from traditional synthetic to new biomimetic approaches
Biomater. Sci., 2013, 1, 239-253.  DOI: 10.1039/c2bm00121g

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Introducing Biomaterials Science Editorial Board Member Justin Cooper-White

Professor Justin Cooper-White, Editorial Board member

Professor Cooper-White graduated with his Bachelors of Engineering (Chemical) in 1991, University of Queensland, and thereafter worked for Shell (Australia) Pty. Ltd. for 5 years as a practicing chemical engineer and processing manager. He commenced his Ph.D. in 1996 and was awarded his Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering (Biomedical Polymers), UQ, in March 2000. He subsequently held a postdoctoral position at the University of Melbourne (UMelb) under the mentorship of Prof. David V. Boger, and joined the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at UMelb as a tenured Senior Lecturer in early 2003. In 2004 he move to the University of Queensland (UQ) to head a new initiative in Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering in the Department of Chemical Engineering and in 2007 was promoted to Professor of Bioengineering. He currently holds the positions of Group Leader within the Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (AIBN, UQ), (inaugural) Director of the Queensland Node of the Australian National Fabrication Facility (ANFF-Q), and Associate Dean (Research) for the Faculty of Engineering, Architecture and Information Technology at UQ. Prof. Cooper-White has over 150 refereed publications and over 300 conference abstracts. His work has appeared in high impact journals in his field and he has also produced 6 Worldwide patents that have reached National Phase Entry in USA, Europe and Australia.

Biomaterials Science is now accepting submissions. All articles will be free to access until the end of 2014. Please contact the editorial office if you have any questions about the journal.

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Happy holidays from Biomaterials Science!

All of us in the Biomaterials Science Editorial team would like to wish you all a merry Christmas and a happy new year! The Editorial office will be closed from 21 December 2012 and will reopen on 2 January 2013.

We’re really looking forward to 2013, which will see more high quality articles from top international biomaterials scientists and much more.

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Introducing Biomaterials Science Editorial Board Member Sarah Heilshorn

Professor Sarah Heilshorn, Editorial Board member

Sarah Heilshorn completed her undergraduate studies in chemical engineering at Georgia Tech. She then earned her MS and PhD in chemical engineering at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) under the supervision of David A. Tirrell. While a graduate student, she was also a visiting scholar in the Department of Polymer Science at the Kyoto Institute of Technology through a National Science Foundation East Asia Fellowship. She was awarded the Caltech Everhart Lectureship for her PhD thesis work in 2004. Following this, Prof. Heilshorn was a postdoctoral scholar with Mu-ming Poo at the University of California, Berkeley in the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology. In 2006 she joined Stanford University as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Materials Science & Engineering. She also holds courtesy faculty appointments in the Departments of Bioengineering and Chemical Engineering. Her research laboratory studies the dynamics of biological and bio-inspired systems at multiple length scales, including the molecular through to the multi-cellular level. Current topics of investigation include the design of injectable materials for stem cell and drug delivery, protein-engineered materials for regenerative medicine scaffolds, and peptide-based self-assembly materials for templated nanoparticle synthesis. In 2009, she was selected for the National Science Foundation CAREER Award and the National Institutes of Health New Innovator Award for young faculty.

Biomaterials Science is now accepting submissions. All articles will be free to access until the end of 2014. Please contact the editorial office if you have any questions about the journal.

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Hot paper: Review of DNA origami technology

All Biomaterials Science content is free until the end of 2014!

DNA nanotechnology allows the construction of self-assembled scaffolds for use in the arrangement of functional molecules and nanomaterials. These can be used to create complex molecular devices. DNA origami is a new programmed DNA assembly system that enables the design of 2D nanostructures which can be functionalised with molecules and nanoparticles.

This Review by Endo, Yang and Sugiyama covers the rapidly moving field of DNA materials science. The review describes the state of current DNA origami research and describes its applications in biomaterials such as the selective functionalisation and single molecule imaging of biomolecules; cell-targeting and as a basis for molecular machines.

DNA origami technology for biomaterials applications
Biomater. Sci., 2012, Advance Article.  DOI: 10.1039/c2bm00154c

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Introducing Biomaterials Science Editorial Board Member Patrick S. Stayton

Prof. Patrick S. Stayton, Editorial Board member

Patrick Stayton currently serves as the Washington Research Foundation Professor in the Department of Bioengineering at the University of Washington. He is the founding Director of the Institute for Molecular Engineering and Sciences, and the Center for Intracellular Delivery of Biologics. He received his B.S. in Biology (summa cum laude) from Illinois State University in 1984, his Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of Illinois in 1989, and was a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, also at the University of Illinois.

Dr. Stayton’s eclectic research group works at the interface of fundamental molecular science and applied molecular bioengineering. His laboratory has fundamental projects aimed at elucidating the basic principles underlying biomolecular recognition, and connected projects applying these principles to medical applications in the drug delivery, medical diagnostics, and regenerative medicine fields. He has published over 200 scientific papers. Dr. Stayton has a strong interest in translating the group’s research, has been awarded several patents, and is a co-founder of the startup companies PhaseRx Inc. based on his group’s biologic drug delivery work, and Nexgenia based on their diagnostic work.

Dr. Stayton has been elected as a Fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering, and has been the recipient of the Clemson Award from the Society For Biomaterials and the CRS-Cygnus Recognition Award from the Controlled Release Society. He served as Co-Chair of the Gordon Conference on Drug Carriers in Medicine and Biology in 2010. He has also been awarded the 2009 Faculty Research Innovation Award, UW College of Engineering, and the Distinguished Teacher and Mentor Award from the Department of Bioengineering.

Biomaterials Science is now accepting submissions. All articles will be free to access until the end of 2014. Please contact the editorial office if you have any questions about the journal.

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Biomaterials Science Issue 1 now online!

Less than a year after the launch announcement, the first issue of Biomaterials Science is now available online. Showcasing the latest biomaterials research, Issue 1 contains articles on the following:

Enzyme responsive materials, Rein V. Ulijn et al.: This review summarises recent advances in enzyme responsive material development, highlighting design strategies and future challenges in the field.

Bone repair using bioceramics, María Vallet-Regí et al.: Understanding natural ossification mechanisms is essential for designing scaffolds for bone tissue engineering. Mesoporous bioactive ceramics formed scaffolds by rapid prototyping and are excellent candidates for bone regeneration.

Zn and Sr substitution in tricalcium phosphate on osteoclast differentiation and resorption, Susmita Bose et al.: Tunable osteoclast cell differentiation and resorption of β-TCP bone substitute was achieved by Zn and/or Sr doping—a much needed property for successful bone remodelling.

A bio-inspired neural environment to control neurons, Morgan R. Alexander et al.: Chemical and micro-topographical gradients are used as a high-throughput means to assess neural cell interaction. Surface conditioning by radial glial cells enhances neuron attachment and alignment.


All articles published in Biomaterials Science are free to access online to all individuals who sign up for an RSC Publishing personal account, and all the existing RSC customers with an IP address registered.

Like what you read? Submit your work to Biomaterials Science now. Your articles will benefit from wide exposure with free access upon registration to all content published during 2013 and 2014 giving maximum visibility to your work.

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Hot paper: Bio-ink for printing living cells on demand

All Biomaterials Science content is free for 2 years!

A bio-ink to print living cells onto a surface using a commercial printer has been developed by Dr Marc in het Panhuis and colleagues at the University of Wollongong, Australia. Bioprinting can be used for tissue engineering and analytical applications. The bio-ink consists of a gel – gellan gum – that’s used in food additives. The gel makes sure that the cells in the bio-ink remain suspended with no sign of aggregation, which was the problem with previous inks. Aggregation means an uneven distribution of cells being printed out onto a surface.

Bio-ink for printing living cells on demand

Biomater. Sci., 2012, Advance Article.  DOI: 10.1039/c2bm00114d

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Nasal gel alternative to insulin injection: Biomaterials Science article in Chemistry World

The formulation affects the controlled delivery of insulin, demonstrated by a reduction in blood glucose over 24 hours. © Shutterstock

An international team of scientists has developed a novel insulin delivery system for nasal administration. The study aims to provide an alternative to regular injections through the delivery of insulin via the nasal membrane in the form of a hydrogel. This route offers a relatively high bioavailability, avoidance of the first-pass effect (in which a drug’s concentration is reduced before it reaches the systemic circulation) and painless administration.

Considerable research effort has been dedicated to developing alternative non-invasive insulin delivery systems, including oral and transcutaneous administration. The major limitations of nasal delivery are the rapid mucociliary clearance of a drug to the nasopharynx, resulting in a short time span for its absorption, and the low permeability of the nasal membrane to peptides such as insulin because of tight junctions between epithelial cells.

Read the full article by Michael Parkin in Chemistry World.

A once-a-day dosage form for the delivery of insulin through the nasal route: in vitro assessment and in vivo evaluation
H. Nazar ,  P. Caliceti ,  B. Carpenter ,  A. I. El-Mallah ,  D. G. Fatouros ,  M. Roldo ,  S. M. van der Merwe and J. Tsibouklis
Biomater. Sci., 2013, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C2BM00132B

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Ink containing living cells to print tissue: Biomaterials Science article in Chemistry World

Printing cellsScientists in Australia are a step closer to printing living cells for tissue engineering with the development of a new bio-ink that allows the cells to stay alive until they are printed and not clog up the printer nozzle.

‘The first bio-inks used in drop-on-demand cell printing were simple salt solutions,’ says Marc in het Panhuis, who was part of the research team at the University of Wollongong. ‘The cells in these inks settled and aggregated quickly, which impeded printing. Cell viability can also be compromised if the salt concentration is too high.’

Read the full article in Chemistry World.


 

Bio-ink for on-demand printing of living cells
Cameron J. Ferris,  Kerry J. Gilmore,  Stephen Beirne,  Donald McCallum,  Gordon G. Wallace and Marc in het Panhuis
Biomater. Sci., 2013, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C2BM00114D

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