Linnaeus University Centre for Biomaterials Chemistry

Biomaterials are artificial materials used in various types of medical equipment to replace or assist bodily functions. Biomaterials chemistry is a broad discipline that covers a number of different specialties, ranging from chemistry and biochemistry, via biotechnology, to immunology, and physiology, in order to provide results that are applicable in various medical treatments.

Today, biomaterials are used routinely within medicine, odontology, and biotechnology. However, if we go back just 50 years the word biomaterials was unheard of. Humans have, however, used materials unfamiliar to the body within medicine for a much longer period of time – e.g., dentures made of shells have been found with Maya Indians who lived 1400 years ago, and in the Ancient Egypt wounds were stitched together with linen threads. But there was not any understanding of biocompatibility and no academic training within the field. Modern biomaterials science is still very young, and many unsolved questions remain. One great challenge is to develop materials that are accepted by our bodies.

The cutting-edge research group at Linnaeus University within the field of biomaterials chemistry comprises new and previously not used methods for developing new materials with predetermined qualities, both on molecular and nanostructural levels, with possible long-term application in cardiovascular research, controlled medicine dosage, detection technology, and a number of other areas.

That the field of research is of immediate interest is clearly evident from the efforts being made by, for instance, FP7 (EU) and Swedish SSF, to stimulate development within the field, as well as by the fact that the Royal Society of Chemistry recently established a department for biomaterials chemistry.

Many biological processes are determined by how different molecules in substances recognise and bind each other. One such example is our immune defense, which is controlled by molecules called antibodies. These molecules recognise and bind unfamiliar molecules called antigens. This way antibodies render the unfamiliar substances harmless. Antibodies recognise antigens by having something reminiscent of a pouch that fits the structure of an antigen perfectly.

It is possible to create this kind of recognition artificially through molecular plastic casting technology. This is achieved by mixing plastic building blocks with the molecule one wishes to attract. When the plastic has solidified you wash away the molecule. What remains are casts that molecules of that kind can attach to when they come across the site. However, the downside is that you also get a number of imprints that are not so good, and will not be recognised by the molecules that you wish to attract. One can try to minimise this by trying to understand why the imprints are created and then provide the materials with as good conditions as possible for making good imprints. The solution can be, for instance, to use the correct solvent or the correct temperature.

Kristina Nilsson Ekdahl is professor of immunology at Linnaeus University, and research manager for the cutting-edge research group Linnaeus University Centre for Biomaterials Chemistry.

– We hope to increase awareness of the chemical processes that are the underlying causes for the use of biomaterials in different medical applications, says Kristina. The human body is programmed to identify and destroy substances it is not familiar with. We strive to imitate, manipulate, or deceive the different mechanisms of the body in order to come up with materials that are 'kinder' to the body, Kristina explains.

– Hopefully our research will lead to increased knowledge that can be converted into improved treatment that more easily can be tailor-made, says Kristina. One can come up with a number of possible areas of application for these tailor-made materials. More accurate and sensitive sensors, i.e., instruments that are able to measure the amount of different medicines and other substances in blood and other bodily fluids, or in the environment. Particles that more efficiently can bind and transport various types of medicines, e.g. cytotoxic drugs, and then deliver them to the right place in the body, e.g. a cancer tumor.