Biomaterials Experimental Design

Biomaterials experimental design (257 - 15568)
Study: Bachelor in Biomedical Engineering
Semester 2/Spring Semester
4th Year Course/Upper Division

Students are Expected to have completed:

Chemistry
Physics I
Cell and Molecular Biology
Biochemistry
Materials Science and Engineering
Anatomy and Physiology I and II
Introduction to Biomaterials
Fundamentals of Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine

It is also recommended to have completed Biomechanics of continuum media I (solids) and Biomechanics of continuum media II (fluids)

Compentences and Skills that will be Acquired and Learning Results:

The field of Biomaterials has evolved over approximately the past fifty years from the intersection of multiple viewpoints, including materials science, biology, engineering, and clinical, business, and regulatory perspectives. In addition, the constant evolution of new processes and materials makes the field of Biomaterials very dynamic. In particular, there is an increased need of integrating more complex biological knowledge into the design of improved biomaterials.

Much consideration is given to the design of a biomaterial for a specific application. Certain properties of the biomaterial must be controlled in order to perform the necessary function and to elicit the appropriate response. These properties can be tailored to a specific need by carefully controlling the structural characteristics, modifying the surface properties, and employing biomimetic elements in the biomaterial design. Biomimetic principles are gaining widespread acceptance in the development of biomaterials, especially for drug delivery, regenerative medicine and nanotechnology.

After being introduced to the fundamentals of Biomaterials (Course: Introduction to Biomaterials, 3rd year), students will become familiar with the state of the art technology in biomaterial research in order to solve complex biomedical problems that arise not only at hospitals, but also at universities, research centers and companies.

The student will acquire advanced knowledge to design biomaterials for applications in bioengineering, biotechnology and nanomedicine. Furthermore, the student should acquire a critical ability for the possibilities of these technologies in the near future. Students will be required to acquire understanding and expertise from analysis of primary literature.

Description of Contents: Course Description

This course is designed to instruct the students in the experimental design of biomaterials for specific applications, including:

Fundamentals of biomaterials science and its application in biomedical engineering design. Selection and functionalization of biomaterials. Biocompatibility of materials. Designing biomaterials to control the transport of drugs and genes. Nanomedicine. Regulatory issues.
Biomaterials are substances that have been designed to direct the course of any therapeutic or diagnostic procedure by controlling interactions with biological systems. A large toolbox of non-biological materials has been engineered to study cell behavior at the cell-material interface. In this course, we will examine how this interface can be leveraged to study cellular systems and generate novel therapeutics. A critical evaluation of the primary research literature will be used to frame discussions about the interactions between cells and biomaterials. In particular, we will discuss how cell behavior can be altered by controlling biochemical and biophysical cues of substrate materials, how new organs and tissues can be produced by the use of structured scaffolds that direct cells into organized forms, and how specific patterning of materials can enable biological processes to be studied and altered at the single-cell level. We will also consider the applications at patterned cell-material interfaces to build artificial systems, such as organs-on-a-chip, which can be used to perform preclinical tests for the activity and toxicity of drug candidates. Also, we will discuss the combination of non-biological materials with genetic material (DNA and RNA), which can be a robust approach to modifying gene expression at the level of cells, tissues, or organs.

The course includes the following topics:
- Biomaterial selection for tissue engineering
- Nano and biomaterial design: microfabrication, modification and functionalization
- Biocompatibility of biomaterials: cell-material crosstalk
- Assessment of cell/protein-biomaterial interactions
- Nanotechnology and Targeted drug/protein/gene delivery systems
- Biomaterials for cell, tissue and organ on a chip:lab-on-a-chip devices
-Stem cell niche generation:high thorughput technologies
-3D-Bioprinting technology
- From lab to market: Regulatory issues

Learning Activities and Methodology:
The program will be divided into:

- Master classes: lectures focused on biomaterial experimental design and biomedical applications of biomaterials. Some lectures will be given by prestigious professionals in the field.
- Discussion classes (seminars): relevant scientific articles and problems will be presented and discussed by the students and the teaching team.
- Practical sessions in the laboratory: three weeks (15 hours/student). The laboratory sessions will give students a practical overview of biomaterials experimental design and they will need to apply the knowledge acquired during the course to perform the corresponding experiments.

Assessment System:

Grading will be based on continuous evaluation and a final exam covering the whole subject, including invited lectures and seminars. Help sessions and tutorial classes will be held prior to the final exam upon students´ request.
Attendance to lectures and seminars is not compulsory. However, failure to attend any test will result in a mark of 0 in the corresponding continuous evaluation block (see below). The attendance to 80 % of practical sessions is mandatory.

GRADING:
Total score: 10 points
Continuous evaluation: 4.5 points out of 10
Final exam: 5.5 points out of 10

CONTINUOUS EVALUATION: It accounts for up to 45% of the final score of the subject (4,5 points of the TOTAL SCORE), and includes three components:
1) One test: 1.2 points of THE TOTAL SCORE. The test will be announced at least one week in advance.
2) Practical sessions in the laboratory: 1.5 points of THE TOTAL SCORE
3) Presentation of a "lab-on-a-chip" project: 1.8 points of THE TOTAL SCORE

FINAL EXAM: The final exam will cover the whole subject, including invited lectures and seminars, and will account for the 55 % of the final score (5.5 points of the TOTAL SCORE). The minimum score in the final exam to pass the subject is 4 over 10, notwithstanding the mark obtained in continuous evaluation.

ACADEMIC CONDUCT: Unless specified, all exams will be closed-book, closed-notes, no PC or mobile phone, or anything else other than a writing implement and the exam itself. Plagiarism, cheating or other acts of academic dishonesty will not be tolerated. Any infractions whatever will result in a failing grade.

Basic Bibliography:

Buddy D. Ratner, Allan S. Hoffman, Frederick J. Schoen and Jack E. Lemons.. - Biomaterials Science: An Introduction to Materials in Medicine.. - Academic Press.. - 2012.
Jason A. Burdick and Robert L. Mauck. . - Biomaterials for Tissue Engineering Applications: A Review of the Past and Future Trends.. - Springer Verlag.. - 2011.
Johnna S. Temenoff and Antonios G. Mikos.. - Biomaterials: The Intersection of Biology and Materials Science.. - Prentice Hall.. - 2009.