Project description
Surface modification of medical implants to prevent cell overgrowth
Smart medical implants find applications in all medical fields, including miniaturised pacemakers. The implants with a Titanium-alloy are less overgrown by the cells and can be easily removed or replaced. Recently developed Titanium-alloy substrate with self-organised spikes covered with sub-micrometer ripples created by laser-ablation provides too little surface for cell growth. The EU-funded CellFreeImplant project focuses on finding partners for the future development of smart implants with patient needs in mind. The project will identify at least four different market segments for miniaturised and smart medical implants. The customised samples with surfaces modified by laser-induced micro- and nano-structures will be provided for assessment by the potential strategic partners.
Objective
New miniaturized and smart medical implants are more and more used in all medical fields, including miniaturized pacemakers. These implants with a casing consisting often of a Ti-alloy may have to be removed after some months or several years and shall therefore not be completely overgrown by the cells. In the framework of the ongoing FET Open project LiNaBioFluid, we successfully demonstrated that self-organized sharp cones or spikes at Ti-alloy substrates created by pulsed laser-ablation can result not only in complete wetting by water and body fluids but at the same time provide too little surface for the cells (i.e. fibroblasts) to grow on. Compared to flat surfaces, the cell density on the microstructures is significantly lowered, the coverage is incomplete and the cells have a clearly different morphology. The best results regarding suppression of cell growth are obtained on structures created by femtosecond Ti:sapphire laser irradiation, which are subsequently electrochemically treated. The goal of the Coordination and Support Action CellFreeImplant is to find strategic partners (end-users) for future development of smart medical implants addressing wide-spread patients needs for instance in the field of cardio-vascular diseases. The project activities include the identification of the market segments and needs and assessment of the technology with end-users.
Fields of science
Programme(s)
Funding Scheme
CSA - Coordination and support actionCoordinator
4040 Linz
Austria