Materials for health

Impact: The new frontier of health technologies where medical devices complement the body's own systems to treat and repair disease and major injuries

Organic Bionics

Electronic medical devices, such as pacemakers, Cochlear implants and deep brain stimulators have revolutionised health treatment and outcomes for millions of people.

The new frontier of research into bionic devices is being driven by the emergence of new materials known as ‘inherently conducting polymers’ (ICPs). ICPs provide versatility in composition, and applied in the medical field, have the potential to substantially enhance the electrode-tissue interaction through their ability to contain drugs and other substances – a feature missing from traditional devices which use metal electrodes.

The use of ICPs to electrically stimulate living cells and tissue structures in ways that are more tailored towards the needs of tissue systems that need to be repaired, modified or replaced is the focus of research led by Distinguished Professor Gordon Wallace at the ARC Centre of Excellence for Electromaterials Science (ACES) and the Intelligent Polymer Research Institute (IPRI).

The application of ICPs to bionic devices has the potential to significantly impact health treatments for conditions including epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease and the repair of damaged nerves and muscles.

Fundamental to this research are the strong collaborations the ACES/IPRI team have with hospitals and medical focussed corporations including Boston Scientific Inc and Cochlear Ltd, leading in particular to the establishment of Australia’s first in-hospital 3D printing facility, at St Vincent’s Hospital, Melbourne.

In parallel with their collaborations focused on translating ICPs science into clinical application, the team continue to develop and refine methods of assessing the performance of these materials and devices, which has led to significant advancements in instrumentation and materials analysis.

 3D Bioprinting

Imagine a world where doctors could replace a patient’s damaged tissue or diseased organ with a new one grown in a laboratory.

By developing specialised 3D printers to build replacement body parts using living cells, researchers at the ARC Centre of Excellence for Electromaterials Science (ACES) and the Intelligent Polymer Research Institute (IPRI), are collaborating with clinicians and researchers around the world to make this concept a reality.

Over the past five years, the ACES/IPRI team has extended its printing capabilities to bioinks - opening up a new ability to include precisely placed living cells as organized components of 3D bioprint structures.

An example of technology the team is developing is the ‘Biopen’ device. Designed to put bioprinting into surgeons’ hands, it will directly print into a defect during surgery.

Other fundamental breakthroughs include the ability to print cells one-by-one via ink-jet printing, and developing a new form of bioprinting, including a co-axial design, which allows the printing of cells ‘inside’ a tubular shaped scaffold material.