OVERVIEW

Biomaterials or biocompatible materials usually refer to materials capable of interacting profitably with living matter. This teaching provides the fundamentals required to study the polymeric-based biomaterials and their functions in biological systems by describing their different classes, their application uses, and the main technological approaches applied in biomedical and pharmacological fields.

AIMS AND CONTENT

LEARNING OUTCOMES

The teaching aims to: a) introduce students to the study of the main chemical, physical and mechanical properties of biomaterials with specific reference to those of a polymeric nature; b) provide the basic notions of biofunctionality, biocompatibility, haemocompatibility and problems related to the interaction between biomaterial and biological environment.

AIMS AND LEARNING OUTCOMES

The teaching aims to provide the fundamental principles underlying the design and production of prostheses, engineered tissues and systems for controlled drug release (DDS) in order to develop the student's ability to apply the theoretical notions to the preparation, functionalization and characterization of innovative materials and systems.

At the end of the teaching the student will be able to:

• identify the main classes of polymeric materials used in biomedical/pharmacological field and properly define their application areas;
• correlate the properties of polymeric materials with their use in biomedical and pharmacological domains;
• correlate the properties of polymeric materials with their biocompatibility/hemocompatibility and suggest general criteria to improve and/or optimize the latter parameters;
• individuate the most suitable characterization techniques of biomaterials according to their specific use;
• know the current production technologies to produce biomedical and pharmacological devices according to their specific use;
• express himself/herself with adequate terminology in the description of phenomena and processes involving biomaterials.

PREREQUISITES

No prerequisites, but it may be useful to have previously followed basic teachings on polymers and biological chemistry.

TEACHING METHODS

The teaching consists of traditional lectures for a total of 32 hours, sometimes accompanied with exercises carried out by the teacher in the classroom.

SYLLABUS/CONTENT

Classification of biomaterials.

Polymeric and composite biomaterials.

Biodegradable, bioresorbable and bioactive materials.

Interaction of biomaterials outside of the blood flow: biostability and biocompatibility.

Interaction of biomaterials within the blood flow: hemocompatibility and thrombogenicity.

Analysis of biomaterial surfaces: characterization techniques and treatment/functionalization protocols.

Polymeric biomaterials for orthopedic, dental, and ophthalmological devices.

Polymeric biomaterials for soft tissues.

Polymeric biomaterials for cardiovascular devices.

Regenerative medical science: tissue engineering and biomimetic materials.

Mono-, bi-, and tridimensional scaffolds for tissue architecture: materials and fabrication techniques.

Controlled drug delivery systems (DDS).

Current regulations related to biocompatibility matter and main evaluation tests.

Based on the items described, the teaching contributes to the achievement of the following Sustainable Development Goals of the ONU 2030 Agenda: Goal 4. Quality Education, Goal 5. Gender Equality and Goal 12. Responsible consumption and production.

As a quality assurance, the detailed program of the teaching is uploaded to the corresponding aula@web page, so the students can verify the correspondence between topics and learning outcomes.

RECOMMENDED READING/BIBLIOGRAPHY

In order to facilitate learning, lesson notes are uploaded to the corresponding aul@web simultaneously with their content’s presentation in the classroom.

In addition, quizzes and tests lasting one hour each and exam simulations are uploaded on the same webpage. These activities are to be taken asynchronously to the lectures in order to check individual preparation.

The following supporting texts are suggested limited to the content covered in the teaching:

R. Pietrabissa, “Biomateriali per Protesi e Organi Artificiali”, Patron Ed. Bologna, 1996 (CSB Ingegneria)

R. Fumero, P. Giusti, “Biomateriali: dalla ricerca di base all’applicazione clinica”, Patron Ed., Bologna, 1985 (CSB Ingegneria)

C. Di Bello, “Biomateriali-Introduzione allo Studio”, Patron Ed., Bologna, 2005

A. Atala, “Principles of regenerative medicine”, 2nd edition, London: Academic, 2010

“Perspectives on biomaterials: proceedings on the 1985 International Symposium on Biomaterials”, O.C.C- Lin & E.Y.S. Chao, Eds., 1985 (CSB Chimica)

J.B. Park, R.S. Lakes, “Biomaterials-An Introduction”, Springer-Verlag, N.Y. Inc., 2007

A.F. von Recum, “Handbook of Biomaterials Evaluation: Scientific, Technical and Clinical Testing of Implant Materials”, CRC Press, 1999 (ISBN 1560324791).

Supplementary material is provided on request to working students or students with SLD to meet specific needs.

TEACHERS AND EXAM BOARD

Exam Board

MARINA ALLOISIO (President)

LESSONS

LESSONS START

Teaching is held during the second semester according to the timetable indicated at the link below.

https://easyacademy.unige.it/portalestudenti/ 

Class schedule

The timetable for this course is available here: Portale EasyAcademy

EXAMS

EXAM DESCRIPTION

The exam is an oral examination conducted by two teachers (including the teacher in charge) for a duration of at least 30 minutes. During the calendar year, 7 exam sessions are scheduled in the time intervals established by the Manifesto degli Studi and the Regolamento del Corso di Studio. Extraordinary sessions outside the as-indicated periods will be granted only to students overdue with the curriculum studiorum.

The oral examination consists of two parts; both of them are awarded a maximum rating of 15/30 for the exam evaluation:

- in the first part the student has to face a problem with the use of polymeric materials in biomedical field in order to verify the comprehension and mastery of the teaching topics as well as the ability to apply theoretical concepts to real situations.

- in the second part, the student is called upon to answer questions related to topics of the teaching program, chosen by the exam committee.

For students with valid certification of physical or learning disabilities, the examination methods refer to the specific regulations of the University of Genova (https://unige.it/disabilita-dsa).

We recommend the students who wish to discuss possible accommodations regarding the exams to contact by e-mail the teacher and the reference lecturer of the School of Mathematical, Physical and Natural Sciences (sergio.didomizio@unige.it) well in advance (at least 10 days).

ASSESSMENT METHODS

Goal of the assessment is to verify the student's ability to correlate the chemical, physical, mechanical, and thermal properties of polymeric biomaterials with their potentialities in biomedical and pharmaceutical fields. Moreover, the oral exam will check the achievement of the appropriate level of knowledge of the topics developed during the lectures and the language skills. The student’s ability to compare and discuss the data available from different characterization and processing techniques included in the teaching program will also be evaluated.

If the learning outcomes are not achieved, the student is invited to deepen his preparation also by taking advantage of further explanations by the teacher in charge before repeating the exam.