Matthias P. Lutolf

Institute of Bioengineering and Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Switzerland

The earliest steps of development are characterized by cellular reorganization and differentiation within a three-dimensional (3D) microenvironment. This 3D context allows for a complex spatial interplay between biochemical and mechanical signals, and governs important cellular rearrangements leading to morphogenesis. In vitro approaches have attempted to capture key features of these processes, and it has now become possible to generate an increasing variety of self-organizing multicellular tissue constructs termed ‘organoids’. While these approaches are incredibly promising, a number of limitations exist that preclude their reliable use. In particular, the poor reproducibility, dependency on ill-defined matrices, and current inability to scale these assays need to be addressed to make organoid models useful for pharmacological applications and personalized medicine. In this talk, I will highlight recent efforts in my lab to grow organoids in fully defined synthetic hydrogels.

Jürgen Groll

Department for Functional Materials in medicine and Dentistry, University Hospital Würzburg

Hydrogels are three-dimensionally cross-linked hydrophilic polymer networks in which cells can be embedded similar like in the extra cellular matrix of many tissues. Only recently, the combination with 3D printing has led to development of printable hydrogels for direct genera-tion of hierarchical structures that allow mimicry of tissue like morphologies. Moreover, the polymer network in hydrogels protects embedded bioactives such as proteins and peptides from degradation, and the degradability of the network can be adjusted through the chemical design of the polymers and the choice of cross-linking mechanism. This lecture will give an overview on different approaches for the generation of hierarchical cell-biomaterial constructs as strategy to tissue and patient specific therapies.

Georg Duda

Julius Wolff Institute for Biomechanics and Musculoskeletal Regeneration, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin

Understanding cascades of endogenous regeneration in bone (leading to restitutio ad integrum) may serve as blueprint even for tissues currently leading to scar formation. The multistage regenerative cascade is initiated in response to injury and vessel disruption with a well-orchestrated inflammatory response. Specific immune cell subsets of the adaptive immune system influence the regenerative healing capacity after fracture. The impact of the immune cells on the quality of the newly formed, hierarchically organized bone tissue however, have so for not been fully understood.

Shrikrishnan Sankaran

Leibniz Institute of New Materials (INM), Saarbrücken

The biochemical constitution and physical properties of natural tissues progressively change over their lifetime and dramatically vary in pathological states like cancer. These changes are sensed by the embedded cells, and can trigger cellular processes and transitions. At INM-Leibniz Institute for New Materials we develop biomaterials to recreate dynamic cellular scenarios of biomedical relevance. These can be applied to guide cell-materials interactions in vitro and in vivo. Optoregulated biomaterials represent powerful platforms for screening intricate biological phenomena in natural environments, for constructing personalized tissue and disease models and advanced scaffolds for cell therapies.

Matthias Laschke

Institute for Clinical & Experimental Surgery, Saarland University

The dorsal skinfold chamber is a model for the analysis of the dynamic interaction of biomaterials with the host tissue in rats, hamsters and mice. By means of intravital fluorescence microscopy, this chronic model allows repetitive analyses of molecular and cellular mechanisms that are involved in the inflammatory and angiogenic response to biomaterials during the initial 2-3 weeks after implantation. Therefore, it has been broadly used for the in vivo evaluation of different biomaterials, such as surgical meshes, bone substitutes or scaffolds for tissue engineering. These studies have contributed to identify basic material properties determining the implants’ biocompatibility, vascularization and incorporation. Thus, the dorsal skinfold chamber does not only provide new insights into complex biomaterial-tissue interactions but is also suitable for the development of biomaterials with an improved biofunctionality.

Herbert Zeisel

Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF)

Excellent research and development activities are the first important steps for future innovations. The major challenge is to bring together all the necessary strands of an innovation policy, to match the right people and institutions and ideas.This is where federal funding policy is crucial: to build a sustainable innovation ecosystem with an inherent systematic approach that includes material design and polymeric device development as well as processing, regulative obligations, economic necessities and individual needs. To find the right “ingredients” for an ecosystem for biomaterials-based approaches for personalized medicine is a challenge, but worth the endeavor to improve the quality of life of our citizens.