Medical materials have attracted the attention of researchers in recent years, mainly due to their important economic and clinical application benefits.
1. Have an important economic strategic position
With the socio-economic development, the aging population is increasing, the trauma of young and middle-aged people is increasing, and the continuous injection of new technologies and other factors, human demand for medical care has also grown rapidly. For more than a decade, the growth of international healthcare costs has been higher than the growth of GDP over the same period. The urgent human demand for medical care has greatly promoted the rapid development of biomedical materials and their products in the high-tech material market, which has the highest technological value-added materials. Its annual growth rate has reached as high as 15% -20%.
Increasing efforts to develop the biomedical materials and products industry to provide high-quality and inexpensive products will not only boost domestic demand, but will also foster new growth points in the national economy and generate huge economic benefits. The development of biomedical materials science and industry is also of great significance to national defense and national security, as pointed out in the report of the "21st Century US Army Strategic Technology" formulated by the United States: Biotechnology is the most promising technology for enhancing combat effectiveness in the next 30 years, and Biomedical materials are an important part of it. The biomedical and its products industry is gradually marching into the pillar industries of the world economy.
Second, the fundamentals of the development of implantable medical devices
Compared with implantable medical devices, medical materials are the source of running water and the roots of trees. Without materials with good biocompatibility and other expected properties, it is impossible to have implantable medical devices.
The medical materials used as implantable medical devices include: metals, high molecular polymers, ceramics, biogenic materials and their derivatives, etc.
In the intervention field, coronary stents, stainless steel, cobalt alloys, titanium and titanium alloys, and zirconium, which are gradually popular at home and abroad, are the basic metal materials for making interventional implantable devices. Polymer carriers are generally coated with polymer polymers.
As for the materials of orthopedics, dentistry and other surgical implant products, in addition to the above-mentioned metals, polymers such as ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE), polyether ether ketone (PEEK), polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), etc. There are also broad application fields; compact ceramics such as alumina and zirconia are mainly used as base materials for implant components; surface coating materials such as hydroxyapatite have also been used for nearly 30 years.
Artificially produced inorganic and organic materials, bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) and other biological factors and bio-derived materials, including allogeneic bone and heterogeneous bone, are used as bone filling and repair, constituting the so-called orthopedic biorepair Materials have developed rapidly in Western countries, and their market value accounts for 14% of the world's orthopedic market share, exceeding l1% of common orthopedic trauma products.
According to the medical materials industry report, in 2013 there were 7 important technological research progresses in global medical materials:
Progress 1: Japan uses algae to produce plastics, which are no less heat-resistant and easy to process
On January 9, 2013, Japanese researchers announced that they had successfully produced plastics using the algae "Gymnodinium" that can be used for photosynthesis as the main raw material.
The researchers believe that this new technology emits less carbon dioxide than petroleum-based plastics.
Euglena is a type of single-cell eukaryotic organism with both animal and plant characteristics, and is called Euglena in protozoology. They are easy to cultivate, and the photosynthesis efficiency is higher than that of land plants.
A joint research group consisting of Japan Industrial Technology Research Institute and Miyazaki University found that Euglena can produce large amounts of high-molecular sugar in cells. After extracting this sugar, and then reacting with fat, you can synthesize plastic.
70% of the synthetic plastic components come from plants, which is not only as easy to process as petroleum-based plastics, but also has heat resistance.
Progress 2: Teijin improves plant-based biopolycarbonate resin technology to improve heat resistance and impact resistance
In April 2013, Teijin has improved the technology of plant-based biopolycarbonate resin product "PLANEXT". By changing the molecular design, the heat resistance and impact resistance have been improved compared to the previous PLANEXT, which solves the problems compared with polycarbonate resins made of petroleum. The improved product is called "PLANEXTD-7000".
PLANEXT is an environmentally friendly resin with a plant composition of up to 70%. The raw material used is Isosorbide, a compound made from starch extracted from corn kernels. Its formability and chemical resistance are excellent. As a bioplastic with surface hardness and rigidity, it is used in a wide range of applications including automobiles and electronic products.
Teijin has recently improved the technology of plant-based biopolycarbonate resin product "PLANEXT". By changing the molecular design, the heat resistance and impact resistance have been improved compared to the previous PLANEXT, which solves the problems compared with polycarbonate resins made of petroleum. The improved product is called "PLANEXTD-7000".
Progress 3: Researchers have developed new biological nanomaterials that can kill cancer cells
In early July 2013, Dr. Wang Yilong and Professor Shi Donglu of the Institute of Biomedical Engineering and Nanoscience, School of Medicine, Tongji University worked closely with their colleagues at the University of Cincinnati and the University of Michigan to develop a new type of surface bifunctional Symmetrical nanocomposite microspheres. This novel structure provides a unique method for the selective coupling of biomolecules on the surface, and the nanomaterial carrier provides a new idea for the construction of multiple functions.
The advantage of this new type of nanostructure is that it is more convenient and efficient to integrate multiple functions into the same nanocarrier, so that it can simultaneously achieve targeting, tracing, magnetic hyperthermia, drug loading and controlled release of drugs.
Progress 4: Scientists invent new medical materials for degenerative disc function and back pain
On July 18, 2013, scientists invented new medical materials for the treatment of degenerative disc function and back pain.
As we age, loose materials that act as buffers between the spine break down, causing back pain and affecting exercise. Injection of nucleus pulposus (NP) cells, the jelly-like tissue present in the intervertebral disc, can slow down the above-mentioned functional degradation and relieve pain, but with the current method, the injected cells leak from the injection site within a few days. When the three liquid components are mixed, a gel is formed. In the preliminary experiment with rabbits, the liquid started to solidify after 5 minutes and set after 20 minutes. The researchers believe that one of the liquid components, a chemically modified protein called laminin found in healthy intervertebral discs, may be able to prolong the stay of nucleus pulposus cells at the target site and protect its invariance.
Progress 5: The birth of the first biological 3D printer in China
In August 2013, Professor Xu Mingen from Hangzhou University of Electronic Science and Technology majored in bioengineering and led the team to develop the first biological 3D printer in China, which can directly print out human living cells. Using the basis of these cells, the printer can also print medical materials such as bone repair devices and artificial organs.
These materials, which were born from the printer, can help people to repair tissues, transplant organs, and have cosmetic and plastic surgery in the future.
Progress 6: Scientists have developed a new type of bio-stick that can regenerate bone
In a research paper published in the international journal Biomaterials on November 11, 2013, researchers from the University of Iowa developed a new type of bio-sticker through research, which can place DNA in nano-sized particles In this way, regeneration of damaged / deficient bone is achieved by transporting bone production instructions into cells.
Progress 7: 4D printing, a variety of medical materials
In October 2013, Skylar Tibbits from the Department of Architecture at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology proposed the concept of "4D printing" at the 2013 TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) Conference in the United States. He threw a long rope of 3D printed composite material with joints into the water, and the long rope magically transformed into a pre-designed shape like a transformer. Adding "time" latitude to the 3D printed objects, so that the objects become "memory function", so that they can be automatically assembled into a preset form under the stimulation of specific conditions. This is called "4D printing".
4D printing has high application value in the medical field. At present, some companies have started to develop and develop memory-based biological heart stents based on 4D printing technology.
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