The Institute for Polymer Research located in Teltow/Berlin is seeking applications from a biologist, physician, or biochemist for a position as Group leader in Biocompability Research Group Code-No. P 18. The position is initially limited to three years but can be extended.
The applicant should have expertise in one or more of the following research areas:
- Evaluation of interactions between synthetic multifunctional materials and cells and tissues in vitro and in vivo.
- Evaluation of biocompatibility according to EN/ISO Standards.
- Establishment of cell and tissues cultures.
- Influence of biofilms.
- Influence of surface tailored biomaterials on differentiation and vitality of cells.
- Influence of mechanical and degradation characterization of biomaterials on the fate of contacting cells and tissues.
Interested parties should click here for full details of the application.
NanoEurope 2007
September 11 – 13, 2007
St.Gallen, Switzerland
Following last year’s successful event, which was attended by 65 exhibitors and 4,500 visitors from more than 33 countries, the NanoEurope trade fair will once again serve this year as a meeting platform for the interested specialist public. The internationally acclaimed NanoRegulation Conference will be held in 2007 as part of the NanoEurope. The event in 2007 focuses on the industrial areas of medical devices, textiles, and plastics. New additions are solar power and packaging. Also new is the “Dye Solar Cell Industrialization Conference,†which is being organized in cooperation with Dyesol Ltd. and will take place concurrently with the NanoEurope 2007.
For more information contact:
Nicole Friedli, NanoEurope Fair Manager
Phone +41 (0)71 242 04 47
Fax +41 (0)71 242 02 32
Email nicole.friedli@nanoeurope.com
National Stem Cell Holding Inc. claims to have discovered biomaterial derived from nonembryonic stem cells. According to the CEO, the new material appears to promote tissue repair in various wound care applications.
On July 26, 2007, the company announced that while using its proprietary embryonic stem cell lines, CEO Michael Cohen and Jacob Cohen discovered a group of biomaterials that in preclinical studies appear to increase the rate at which the tissue surrounding a wound heals, and ultimately, the strength of such newly formed tissue. Then, the researchers were able to derive such tissue repair promoting biomaterials from nonembryonic stem cells, such as umbilical cord blood cells.
According to Michael Cohen, “By deriving these novel biomaterials from nonembryonic stem cells, such as umbilical cord blood, we believe we can avoid the costly and time consuming procedures that plague therapies developed from embryonic stem cells. This new discovery gives us the ability to cultivate tissue repair and wound healing products and commence clinical trials of such products in an expedited manner.”
Provisional patent applications have been filed with the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
Scientists at the University of Applied Sciences in Zurich, Switzerland, are developing automated tissue culture methods for testing new biomaterials using liquid handling workstation. The cell biology division of the University’s Institute of Chemistry and Biotechnology has been evaluating the workstation’s ability to perform fully automated and reproducible cell culture, including cell harvesting and plating, for several different cell lines with varying adhesion and aggregation characteristics.
The Cell Biology group is involved with the in vitro development and investigation of novel materials for bone, cartilage, intervertebral discs, teeth and other connective tissue implants, and it is essential that these materials are tested to high standards of quality with minimal variation. “Reproducibility is an extremely important part of reaching our clinical goals when working with these materials,” said Professor Dr Ursula Graf-Hausner, Group Leader of the Cell Biology Division.
Globus Medical Inc., a company that makes spinal implant products for fusion, minimally invasive surgery, motion preservation, and biomaterials raised $110 million in a private equity financing deal completed Thursday.
The Audubon, Pa., spinal implant maker plans to use the funds for clinical studies of a variety of new product candidates under development. The financing was led by Clarus Ventures of Cambridge, MA, and San Francisco.
The venture capital deal comes two days after Globus and Synthes, a Swiss spinal implant company with offices in West Chester, PA, announced they reached a settlement in the litigation between the two companies.
Under the terms of the agreement, Globus agreed to pay Synthes $13.5 million and also said it would not solicit or hire any Synthes employees until next Aug. 19. Globus made no admission of liability or wrongdoing. Synthes had sued Globus, which was founded by a group of former Synthes managers, for allegedly misappropriating trade secrets.
Research is showing that layered biomaterials may yield stronger and more successful bone implants. The September issue of Biomaterials describes this approach. The researchers layered a macroporous paste calcium phosphate cement (CPC) and a fiber-reinforced CPC paste to create strong, yet porous characteristics. New bone can grow into the macroporous layer while the fiber-reinforced aspect provides support for the implant. Once new bone is in place, absorbable fibers in the support layer dissolve to promote even more bone ingrowth. The research comes from the American dental Association Foundation and from NIST.
