Bionanotechnology:
The Future of Biomaterials
The objective of the symposium will be to examine the
impact of nanoscale science and engineering on the biomaterial
field. In recent years, nanoscale science and engineering
has provided new avenues for engineering materials with
macromolecular and even down to molecular scale precision.
The resultant biomaterials have been demonstrated to
have enhanced properties and applicability, and these
materials are expected to be enabling technologies in
the successful development and application of nanomedicine.
For example, nanoengineered tissue scaffolds and nanostructured
coatings for implants and prostheses are leading to
better solutions in tissue design, reconstruction, and
reparative medicine. Nano- and microarrays are accelerating
drug discovery and assessment of drug candidates. Self-assembly
and other nanofabrication methods are facilitating the
creation of new biomaterials with well-ordered structures
at the nanoscale such as nanofiber peptide and protein
scaffolds. Also, nanoparticle systems are enabling a
wide range of materials for imaging and/or therapeutic
purposes to be easily introduced or injected in the
body. This symposium will highlight the unlimited potential
of nanoscale science and engineering in biomaterials
science and engineering, and it will give a glimpse
into the future of biomaterials.
Modeling
Bioresponse to Biomaterials
(Biomaterial/Cell Organ Therapy SIG)
The advent of High Throughput Combinatorial Synthesis
(HTCS) has led to the creation of burgeoning libraries
of potential biomaterials. Conventional methods such
as Design of Experiments (DOE) are inadequate to fully
assess the in vitro performance of these large libraries,
leaving little hope for a comprehensive evaluation of
their in vivo behavior. Computational modeling of bioresponse
to biomaterials offers the potential for dramatically
reducing the cost and time required to effectively characterize
a typical library of biomaterials (e.g., polycarbonates)
by combining experiment and simulation in a synergistic
fashion similar to the approach now commonplace in the
pharmaceutical industry. A wide range of modeling techniques
can be utilized to build models ranging from atomistic
simulation (e.g., Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulation)
to Quantitative Structure Property Relations (QSPR).
The Symposium solicits contributed papers on all aspects
of computational modeling of bioresponse to biomaterials.
Organic/Inorganic
Hybrid Biomaterials
(Dental / Craniofacial, and Tissue Engineering SIGs)
This symposium will address key issues related to the
design, synthesis, characterization and utilization
of organic/inorganic hybrid materials to control biological
functions. Biomaterial function depends on processing,
composition and structure, at multiple levels of hierarchy,
as well as on the hierarchical relations inherent to
biology. One approach to enhance biomaterial function
is to control composition and structure via the use
of hybrid materials consisting of organic and inorganic
phases interacting across dimensional scales, ranging
from the molecular level to the whole material level.
Such composite materials mimic biological materials
designed by Nature, and can fulfill different design
criteria and function depending upon the size scale
of the organic/inorganic interactions. Nature, has used
these same principles to achieve higher complexity and
allow adaptation, with a minimal expenditure of energy.
This symposium will serve as a forum to present the
latest developments in organic/inorganic hybrid materials
for biomedical use.
New Concepts
and Challenges for the Delivery of Therapeutic Nucleic
Acids
(Drug Delivery SIG)
This symposium will cover current challenges and new
advances in the delivery of therapeutic nucleic acids
including plasmid DNA, genetic vaccines, RNA, SiRNA
and oligonucleotides. The talks will focus on biological
barriers for nucleic acid delivery and new biomaterials
that are designed to overcome these barriers. In addition
pre-clinical and clinical results on nucleic acid delivery
as well strategies for combinatorial delivery will be
addressed.
Cellular
Signal Transduction
Response to implants by tissue cells is critically dependent
on their ability to recognize the chemical and physical
structure of the implant material. Moreover, the type
and magnitude of response is modulated by their biomechanical
environment. Cellular recognition of material attributes
in context of biomechanical forces involves the transduction
of signals that results in the alteration of cell survival,
proliferation, differentiation, metabolism and function.
This symposium addresses the different genes, molecules
and pathways that play a role in signal transduction
from material to tissue cells through quantitative modeling.
It focuses on the state-of-the-art experiments and quantitative
models to evaluate signal transduction mechanisms and
predict cell response to biomaterials.
Stem Cells:
Source, Culture and Application
(Biomaterial/Cell Organ Therapy SIG)
This symposium will overview state-of-the-art research
on the isolation, propagation and differentiation of
stem cells and their culture on various biomaterials.
Basic stem biology will be addressed, including methods
for characterizing cells based on various cell surface
and genetic markers as well as current challenges and
new advances in culturing both adult and embryonic stem
cells. Particular focus will be on maintenance and differentiation
of stem cells on various biomaterials, 3D culture, and
bioreactor-based cultures.
Advances in Biomaterials Science:
A Tutorial Symposium by the Leaders of Biomaterials
(SFB President’s Advisory Committee)
The objective of the Tutorial Symposium will be to examine
the impact of biomaterials in biology and medicine.
All featured invited speakers of this two-day symposium
will be Past Presidents of SFB who have kindly agreed
to participate without any support of their expenses
or honorarium. In recent years, there has been considerable
work in preparing materials and finding new uses for
hybrid structures based on biomaterials. Uses such as
modified surfaces, stents, carriers for controlled and
targeted drug delivery, and microdevices have shown
the versatility of these biomaterials.
Why do we observe such explosion in the field now? Medical
devices now have reached a stage of dimensions comparable
to those of biological macromolecules. This raises exciting
possibilities for combining microelectronics and biotechnology
to develop new technologies with unprecedented power
and versatility. While molecular electronics use the
unique self-assembly, switching and dynamic capabilities
of molecules to miniaturize electronic devices, nanoscale
biosystems use the power of microelectronics to design
ultrafast/ultrasmall biocompatible devices, including
implants, that can revolutionize the field of bioengineering.
For example, polymer surfaces in contact with biological
fluids, cells, or cellular components can be tailored
to provide specific properties or to resist binding
depending on the intended application and environment.
The design of surfaces for cellular protection or adhesion,
and surface passivity encompasses a number of techniques
such as surface grafting (ultraviolet radiation, ionizing
radiation, electron beam irradiation). Certain techniques
can change the chemical nature of surfaces and produce
areas of differing chemistry as well as surfaces and
polymer matrices with binding regimes for a given analyte.
In addition, biomimetic methods are now used to build
biohybrid systems or even biomimetic materials (mimicking
biological recognition) for drug delivery, drug targeting,
and tissue engineering devices.
This symposium will concentrate on molecular assemblies
and complex polymer structures that exhibit structure,
control, recognition and signal transmission of biological
properties.
|
