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Biology takes centre stage

Nature Materials volume 8, pages 441–443 (2009)Cite this article

Abstract

Traditionally, biomaterials have functioned primarily as implants, with only basic understanding of their interactions with the body apart from biocompatibility. A new generation of biomaterials will actively make use of interactions with biological functions, promising new capabilities and therapeutic products.

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Figure 1: The mechanical properties of a metal stent solve one problem by keeping the blood vessel open following angioplasty, but can in some cases cause injury to the vessel wall that results in the artery cells over-proliferating and eventually re-occluding the vessel.
Figure 2: Drugs conjugated to polymers stay longer in the circulation than non-conjugated drugs and because of their size do not pass through normal blood vessels.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. James W. Burns is at Genzyme, 153 Second Avenue, Waltham, Massachusetts 02451, USA. jim.burns@genzyme.com,

    James W. Burns

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  1. James W. Burns
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Burns, J. Biology takes centre stage. Nature Mater 8, 441–443 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1038/nmat2462

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