Grainger Funds Development of Bio-Adhesives

6/26/2012 By Kathryn L. Heine

Professor Iwona JasiukProfessor Iwona Jasiuk and two professors from the Department of Aerospace Engineering (Eric Loth and Ilker Bayer) were recently selected to receive funding from the Grainger Program in Emerging Technologies, a program created by the Grainger Foundation to promote the translation of new academic engineering developments into commercially viable products and services.

Written by By Kathryn L. Heine

Professor Iwona Jasiuk
Professor Iwona Jasiuk
Professor Iwona Jasiuk
Professor Iwona Jasiuk and two professors from the Department of Aerospace Engineering (Eric Loth and Ilker Bayer) were recently selected to receive funding from the Grainger Program in Emerging Technologies, a program created by the Grainger Foundation to promote the translation of new academic engineering developments into commercially viable products and services. Jasiuk and her colleagues will use the funding to develop biocompatible adhesives that bond bone to other bone. More specifically, they plan to design biomimetics-based biocompatible nanocomposite materials that will adhere in wet environments, quickly set or cure, maintain strength comparable to bone when set, and not inhibit bone growth or healing.

Traditional approaches to bonding bone to bone or bone to metal or composites involve the use of natural or synthetic polymers or cements. That approach typically requires the use of other fasteners, such as screws, and/or chemical pre-treatments. Jasiuk and colleagues will be investigating composite systems made of a polymeric matrix and reinforced with ceramics to provide superior bonding and strength without pre-treatment.

These new systems combine the strength of polymers and ceramics and will lead to the development of materials that are superior to either material on its own. Several different polymer and ceramic combinations will be selected, synthesized to form composites, and tested experimentally and theoretically to access the quality and characteristics of the resulting adhesives. The approach is biomimetics-based and has been successfully applied for dental as well as some orthopedic applications. The technology help orthopedic surgeons better secure scaffolds and implants and could be used in dental applications that involve gluing implanted teeth or other implants to bone, which is a multi-million dollar market.


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This story was published June 26, 2012.