Should medical implants be inert or should they react with the body?
A world leader in medical implants calls for a
rethink in our approach to building medical implants.
Currently so-called biomaterials are chosen because
they are reasonably successful at hiding from the body’s immune system,
and are consequently not rejected. All the same, within a month of implanting
them, the body isolates implants by wrapping them in a collagenous, avascular
sac. Materials are considered to be ‘biocompatible’ if this sac is
not too thick.
Rather than building implants out of materials that try to hide from the body’s systems, Professor Buddy Ratner believes that we should be creating them from materials that are specifically designed to engage with biological processes. This could take the form of materials made with specifically sized pores that encourage small blood vessels to actively grow through the implant, or implants coated with DNA that specifically prevents formation of the collagenous capsule.
Both of these let the implant and the body actively work together, rather than simply try to prevent them fighting against each other.
Functioning together in symbiosis or some other non-combative relationship is appealing. Certainly, this technology would reduce long term loads on the immune system.
Rather than building implants out of materials that try to hide from the body’s systems, Professor Buddy Ratner believes that we should be creating them from materials that are specifically designed to engage with biological processes. This could take the form of materials made with specifically sized pores that encourage small blood vessels to actively grow through the implant, or implants coated with DNA that specifically prevents formation of the collagenous capsule.
Both of these let the implant and the body actively work together, rather than simply try to prevent them fighting against each other.
Functioning together in symbiosis or some other non-combative relationship is appealing. Certainly, this technology would reduce long term loads on the immune system.
Posted: Fri - July 6, 2007 at 06:57 AM