December 2013

        • Visits from Brazil
          Prof. Luismar Marques Porto, Associate Professor at the Federal University of Santa Catarina (UFSC), Florianopolis, Brazil, one of the leading academic and research institutions in Brazil, is visiting our Institute. He is affiliated with the Integrated Technologies Laboratory at UFSC.
          In collaboration with Prof. Boccaccini he is working on the project: Modeling of Advanced Tissue Engineering Scaffolds.
          As first visiting student from UFSC, Ms Camila Schroeder is visiting our Institute as well. She is carrying out a project on "organic-inorganic composites for tissue engineering and drug delivery" under supervision of Dr. J. Bortuzzo and Profs. Marques Porto and Boccaccini. In the picture, Ms Schroeder and Profs. Marques Porto and Boccaccini. (Click image to enlarge)
          Visits from Brazil
        • Final meeting IKYDA project
          Professor D. Bikiaris of the Chemistry Dept. at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece, visited out Institute in the week 9-13 December 2013. During his visit the last meeting of our DAAD funded IKYDA project took place. This project, entitled: "Novel bionanocomposites for bone tissue engineering", was successfully carried out (2012-2013) and enabled the exchange of senior and young researchers between our Institute and AUT to carry out experimental studies on the fabrication and characterisation of a range of biodegradable nanocomposites containing silicate and other oxide nanofillers intended for bone tissue engineering. The project led to publications [1, 2] and other papers are in preparation.
          The principal investigators are Prof. D. Bikiaris (AUT) and Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini (pictured). (Click image to enlarge)

          [1] I. Grigoriadou et al., Evaluation of silica-nanotubes and strontium hydroxyapatite nanorods as appropriate nanoadditives for poly(butylene succinate) biodegradable polyester for biomedical applications, Composites Part B (2013) in press.   
          [2] Papageorgiou, G. Z., et al., Crystallization and Melting Behavior of Poly(Butylene Succinate) Nanocomposites Containing Silica-Nanotubes and Strontium Hydroxyapatite Nanorods, Ind. Eng. Chem. Res., (2013) in press. 

          Final meeting IKYDA project
        • Visit from Australia
          Dr Thomas Fiedler, School of Engineering, University of Newcastle, Australia, visited our Institute on 13th December. There is a current collaboration between the group of Dr Fiedler and Prof Boccaccini in the field of modeling of the mechanical properties of 3D porous scaffolds [1] and future collaborative research was discussed during the visit. (Click image to enlarge)

          [1] T. Fiedler et al., Strengthening mechanism of PDLLA coated titania foam, Mechanics of Materials 69 (2014) 35–40

          Visit from Australia
        • TOPbiomat project celebrates second year
          The Emerging Fields project TOPbiomat coordinated by Prof. A. R. Boccaccini celebrated its second year of successful collaboration with the end-of-year meeting on 16th December 2013. A total of 25 researchers are now working in the framework of this Emerging Fields Initiative funded project including academics, post-docs, PhD students, technical assistants, as well as Master and Bachelor Students. The collaboration between researchers of the Faculties of Engineering, Medicine and Natural Sciences is leading to the generation of knowledge and expertise on the design of cell-based tissue structures (bioprocessing strategies) for the development of advanced scaffolds for regeneration of complex organs with current focus on vascularised bone. (Click images to enlarge)

          TOPbiomat project celebrates second year TOPbiomat project celebrates second year (2)
        • Prof. Boccaccini member of the Advisory Board of DGM
          Prof. Boccaccini attended the last meeting of the Advisory Board (Beraterkreis) of the German Materials Society (DGM) on 4th December 2013 in Frankfurt.
          One of the current activities of the Advisory Board involves the organisation of the MSE 2014 conference to be held in Darmstadt, Germany on 23.-25. September 2014, at which Prof. Boccaccini is co-organising the Topic F: Biomaterials. (Click image to enlarge)

          Beraterkreissitzung
        • Meeting of the Network of Argentinian Scientists in Germany (RCAA)
          Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini attended the meeting of the Advisory Committee of the Network of Argentinian Scientists in Germany (Red de Cientificos Argentinos en Alemania, RCAA) which was held on 28th-29th November 2013 at the Argentinean Embassy in Berlin. The meeting was also attended by the Ambassador of Argentina to the Federal Republic of Germany, Ambassador Mr. Daniel Polski. Prof. Boccaccini is the representative of the area "Engineering" to the Advisory Committee of RCAA. Moreover, at the general annual meeting of RCAA, Prof. Boccaccini gave a presentation about the Latin American collaborations of the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg with focus on interactions with Argentina and he presented the Baviarian Centre for Latin America (BAYLAT). (Click image to enlarge)

          Advisory Committee of the RCAA
        • Project TOPbiomat featurs in DGM Newsletter
          Our project "TOPbiomat" funded by the Emerging Fields Initiative of the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg has been featured in the last issue of the Newsletter of the German Materials Society (DGM).

November 2013

        • Prof. Boccaccini at Vienna University of Technology
          On 22nd November, Prof. Boccaccini visited the Institute for Mechanics of Materials and Structures, headed by Prof. Christian Hellmich, at the Vienna University of Technology, Austria. There is a long-standing research collaboration in the field of mechanial properties of scaffolds between the Institute of Biomaterials and the group of Prof. Hellmich, mainly in the context of our participation in the European Virtual Institute on Knowledge-based Multifunctional Materials AISBL (KMM-VIN) and COST ACTION "From NAno to MAcro BIOmaterials (design, processing, characterization, modeling) and applications to stem cells regenerative orthopedic and dental medicine" (NAMABIO). The latest paper that has resulted from our collaborative projects was published recently [1].

          [1] Hum, J., et al., Stiffness Improvement of 45S5 Bioglass®-Based Scaffolds Through Natural and Synthetic Biopolymer Coatings: An Ultrasonic Study, Strain 49 (2013) 431–439. (Click image to enlarge)

          Prof. Boccaccini at Vienna University of Technology

NBBA

        • 6th Scientific Seminar of the "North-Bavaria Biomaterials Alliance (NBBA)
          The 6th scientific seminar of the North-Bavaria Biomaterials Alliance (NBBA) was held on 19th November 2013 at the University of Bayreuth, hosted by Prof. Thomas Scheibel, with participation of professors and young researchers from Würzburg, Erlangen and Bayreuth. Representing the Erlangen Institute of Biomaterials, Ms Sigrid Seuss and Mr Tobias Zehnder presented short talks about the Erlangen based research activities on electrophoretic deposition and biofabrication, respectively. Mr Luis Cordero moderated the Erlangen session. The complete program of the seminar is available here.
          In photos the three founders of NBBA: Prof. Groll (Würzburg), Prof. Boccaccini (Erlangen) and Prof. T. Scheibel (Bayreuth) and some of the participants during the discussion session. The 7th NBBA Seminar will be held in Erlangen in the next Summer Term. (Click images to enlarge)

          Groll Boccaccini Scheibel NBBA Bayreuth Nov. 2013

Croatia Flag

        • Prof. Boccaccini in Croatia
          On 24-26 November 2013, Prof. Boccaccini visited the Rudjer Boskovic Institute in Zagreb (Croatia), in the framework of our collaboration with Prof. Neven Zarkovic and Dr Lidija Milkovic. This project investigates the development and characterisation of Cu-doped bioactive glasses for bone regeneration strategies and studies cellular response and vascularisation in contact with novel silicate glasses. The project is funded by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD). The first results of the project have been recently published [1]. In the photo, Ms Lidija Milkovic, Prof. Neven Zarkovic, Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini, Dr Judith A. Roether (Institute of Polymer Materials) and members of Prof. Zarkovic's laboratory. (Click image to enlarge)

          [1] Milkovic, L., Effects of Cu-doped 45S5 bioactive glass on the lipid peroxidation-associated growth of human osteoblast-like cells in vitro, J. Biomed. Mater. Res. A (2013) in press

          Croatia November 2013

Japanese Flag

        • Visit from Nagoya Institute of Technology
          On 20th November we received the visit of Prof. Toshihiro Kasuga and Prof. Yuji Iwamoto (in the photo with Prof. Boccaccini) of the Department of Frontier Materials, Graduate School of Engineering, Nagoya Institute of Technology (NITECH) . This visit is in the framework of our continous research collaboration in the field of bioceramics and functional coatings under the JSPS International Training Program led by NITECH "Institute of Ceramics Research and Education". (Click image to enlarge)

          Kasuga Iwamoto Boccaccini

        • Prof. Boccaccini receives scientific award in Argentina
          The "Raices' Prize 2013 of the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovative Production of Argentina has been awarded to Prof. Dr.-Ing. habil. Aldo R. Boccaccini, Head of the Institute of Biomaterials at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg.
          The prize is awarded to outstanding Argentinean scientists living abroad who make significant contributions to science and technology in collaboration with Argentina and who have contributed to promote academic and scientific links with Argentina (see here).

        • Visit from Italy
          Dr. Antonella Sola, a research scientist at the Department of Engineering "Enzo Ferrari" of the University of Modena and Reggio-Emilia, Italy, is visiting our Institute. We collaborate in a project investigating the fabrication and functionalisation of bioactive glass scaffolds based on novel silicate compositions. This project is part of a large collaboration between our Institute and the group of Prof. Valeria Cannillo at the Department of Engineering "Enzo Ferrari" of the University of Modena and Reggio-Emilia in the field of bioactive glasses. (Click image to enlarge)

          Guest from Italy

        • Visit from Greece
          Ms. Elefteria Roumeli, PhD student of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUT), Greece, visited out Institute this month. This visit took place in the framework of our DAAD funded IKYDA project: "Novel bionanocomposites for bone tissue engineering". This collaborative project enables the exchange of senior and young researchers between our Institute and AUT to carry out experimental studies on the fabrication and characterisation of a range of biodegradable nanocomposites containing silicate and other oxide nanofillers intended for bone tissue engineering.
          The principal investigators are Prof. D. Bikiaris (AUT) and Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini (in the photo with Ms Roumeli and Dr M. Goudori). (Click image to enlarge)

          Guest from Greece

        • BioBone EU ITN Workshop in Lyon
          The Workshop "Mechanical characterisation of ceramic-based materials at different scales" of the BioBone EU ITN project was held in Lyon, France, on 6-7 November 2013. Following the workshop, the mid-term review meeting took place on 8th November, where both Preethi Balasubramanian  and Valentina Miguez, PhD students working in the BioBone project, presented posters showing the advancement of their research. (Click image to enlarge)

          BioBone Workshop

        • Visit from Limoges
          On 4th November we received the visit of Prof. F. Rossignol and Prof. Z. Haidar from the Science of Ceramic Processing and Surface Treatments, SPCTS, European Ceramic Centre in Limoges, France. There are strong links between our Institute and SPCTS and we discussed expanding our collaborations in the field of bioceramic scaffolds with vascularisation potential of for bone regeneration applications. (Click image to enlarge)

          Guests from Limoges

        • TOPbiomat project features in Friedrich
          Our project TOPbiomat, funded by the Emerging Fields Initiative (EFI) of the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU) features in the first issue of the new Research Magazine of FAU "Friedrich". The topics of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine are included in pages 76-84 with interviews to Prof. C. Alexiou (Nanomedicine),
          Prof. R. Horch (Hand and Plastic Surgery Department), Prof. A. R. Boccaccini (Institute of Biomaterials), and Prof. F. Engel (Institute of Pathology).

        • Special Issue in "Bioinspired, Biomimetic and Nanobiomaterials" published
          The special issue on the Biomaterials Topic (MSE Conference, Darmstadt, 25-27 September 2012) in the journal "Bioinspired, Biomimetic and Nanobiomaterials", with Prof. A. R. Boccaccini and Prof. K. D. Jandt (University of Jena) as guest editors, has been published.
          The special issue contains a selection of papers contributed by authors who presented at the Biomaterials Topic at the MSE Conference held in Darmstadt, Germany, on 25-27 September 2012. The articles focus on diverse aspects of the development, properties and applications of biomaterials covering a wide range of fields, from surface functionalisation strategies, cell-material interactions, drug delivery systems, biotemplating and biomimetic approaches.
          The special issue contains the paper in collaboration with the group of Dr Ipsita Roy (University of Westminster):
          Basnett, P. et al., Aspirin-loaded P(3HO)/P(3HB) blend films: potential materials for biodegradable drug-eluting stents, Bioinspired, Biomimetic and Nanobiomaterials 2 (2013) 141 –153.

Visit of Prof. J. Stampfl

        • Prof. Boccaccini invited speaker in Madrid
          On 29th October, Prof. Boccaccini presented the Fall Lecture 2013 of the Institute of Ceramics and Glass of Madrid, Spain. The topic of the lecture was “Bioactive Glass Based Scaffolds for Bone Tissue Engineering: Advances and Challenges” where he presented the knowledge frontiers on the processing and design of biomaterials for bone tissue scaffolds based on novel bioactive glass-polymer combinations. The Fall Lectures of ICV were instituted in 2010 to present the frontiers of ceramic and glass science developments. Every year a well recognized researcher with major contributions in a given field related to ceramics or glass science and technology delivers the lecture to the whole ICV and the wider materials community in Madrid. (Click image to enlarge)

boccaccini_invited_speaker_madrid

October 2013

        • Visit from Bayreuth
          We received the visit of Prof. Andreas Greiner and Prof. Seema Agarwal, of the Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry II, University of Bayreuth. We have established a research collaboration between our groups in the field of electrospinning of biopolymers for the development of novel tissue engineering scaffolds, which involves also collaboration with Prof. D. W. Schubert and Dr. J. A. Roether of the Institute of Polymer Materials at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg. (Click images to enlarge)
Visit from Bayreuth Visit from Bayreuth
        • Prof. Boccaccini invited speaker in Vigo, Spain
          Prof. Boccaccini was the international invited speaker at the Seminar: "Bioinspired Materials for Tissue Engineering", held on October 25th, 2013, in the Industrial Engineering School, Campus Lagoas-Marcosende, University of Vigo, Spain, which was organised by The Biomedical Research Institute of Vigo (IBIV), in the framework of the European Project BIOCAPS (Biomedical Capacities Support Program). The lecture of Prof. Boccaccini was entitleBioactive glasses for regenerative medicine: progress and challenges. The photo shows the invited speakers at the seminar and the list of speakers is available here. (Click images to enlarge)
Prof. Boccaccini invited speaker in Vigo, Spain Prof. Boccaccini invited speaker in Vigo, Spain
        • EU ITN GLACERCO Workshop in Erlangen
          The network-wide Workshop of the EU ITN Glacerco project was held in Erlangen organised by Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini on 8-9 October 2013. The program of the workshop is available. Invited speakers were: Dr. R. Mueller (BAM, Berlin), Prof. C. Zollfrank (TU Munich), Prof. W. Peukert (Univ. of Erlangen-Nuremberg), Prof. J. Moya (Institute of Materials Science, Madrid, Spain) and Prof. K. K. Chawla (University of Alabama at Birmingham, AL, USA). On behalf of the coordinating institution, Polytechnic of Turin, Italy, Prof. M. Salvo gave the introduction to the workshop. The principal investigators of almost all partners attended the workshop and the current early stage (ESR) and advanced (ER) researchers presented the advances of their projects. The local organising committee in Erlangen did a fantastic job taking care of all details for a successful workshop. Special thanks go to: Dr Sandra Cabañas-Polo, Ms Anahi Philippart , Mr Rama.K.S.Chinnam, Dr. Judith A. Roether, Dr. Julia Will and Mr H. Mahler. (Click images to enlarge)
Glacerco workshop Erlangen Glacerco workshop Erlangen Glacerco workshop Erlangen DGBM Erlangen Glacerco workshop Erlangen Glacerco workshop Erlangen
Glacerco workshop Erlangen Glacerco workshop Erlangen
        • Visit from Dresden
          Dr Leonid Ionov from Leibniz Institute für Polymerforschung Dresden e.V.  visited the Institute of Biomaterials on 7th October and presented an invited lecture entitled: "Self-folding polymer films for design of biomaterials" at the 8th TOPbiomat Scientific Seminar.
          The future research collaboration of Dr Ionov and our Institute was discussed with Prof. A. R. Boccaccini. (Click image to enlarge)
Visit from Dresden
        • TOPbiomat Scientific Seminar
          The 8th Scientific Seminar of the TOPbiomat project funded by the Emerging Fields Initiative (EFI) of the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany, took place on 7th October 2013 in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, organized by Professor Aldo R. Boccaccini
          Dr. L. Ionov (Leibniz-Institut fuer Polymerforschung Dresden e.V. ) and Prof. J. Stampfl (Technical University of Vienna, Austria) were the invited speakers (in the photo with Prof. Boccaccini). The program of the seminar is here. (Click images to enlarge)
8th TOPbiomat Scientific Seminar 8th TOPbiomat Scientific Seminar 8th TOPbiomat Scientific Seminar
        • Prof. Boccaccini invited speaker in Wuerzburg
          Professor Boccaccini presented the lecture: "Biofabrication of advanced tissue scaffolds and soft matrices for vascularised bone tissue regeneration” as invited speaker at the conference "Polymere Biomaterialien – vom Material zum Gewebe", organised by MedTech Pharma Forum, in Würzburg, Germany, 10th October, 2013. (Click image to enlarge)
Biopolymer in Wuerzburg

"Photo published with permission, Image rights belong to Bayern Innovativ GmbH."

        • Visit from Madrid
          Prof. Jose S. Moya and Dr. Leticia Esteban-Tejeda of the Institute of Materials Science of Madrid, Spain, visited our Institute earlier this month. Prof. Moya was an invited speaker at the GLACERCO workshop organised by Prof. Boccaccini in Erlangen on 8-9 October 2013. We are collaborating with Prof. Moya's group in the field of bioactive glasses with antibacterial functionality, e.g. [1]
          [1]  Belén Cabal, Francisco Malpartida, Ramón Torrecillas, Alexander Hoppe, Aldo R. Boccaccini and J. Serafín Moya,The Development of Bioactive Glass-Ceramic Substrates with Biocide Activity, Advanced Engineering Materials 13 (2011) B462–B466. (Click image to enlarge)
Visit from Spain
Visit from Brno, Czech Republic
Visit of Prof. K. K. Chawla
        • Successful Annual Conference on the German Society for Biomaterials in Erlangen
          The Annual Conference of the German Society for Biomaterials (DGBM) was held in Erlangen on 26-28 September 2013 with Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini as Conference Chairman and a team of colleagues from Erlangen, Würzburg and Bayreuth as members of the local organising committee. DGBM former president Prof. M. Epple (Univ. of Duisburg-Essen) and current DGBM president Prof. S. Rammelt (University Hospital, TU Dresden) were present. DGBM celebrated its 20th Anniversary at the Conference. The conference attracted more than 250 participants from Germany and abroad, coming from universities, research centres and industry. The main topic of the meeting was "Strategies for vascularization of implants and new biomaterials" but a wide range of topics in the broad biomaterials field were covered, including: bioactive and biodegradable materials (polymers, ceramics and metals), multifunctional scaffolds for tissue engineering, biofabrication and cell processing, in-vitro and in-vivo studies, coatings, surfaces and biofunctionalisation techniques, drug delivery systems, antibacterial materials and nanomaterials in medicine. A compact and complete scientific program was prepared, which involved 7 oral sessions and 2 large poster sessions in addition to the Young Scientists Forum organised by Dr. S. Ghanaati (University of Mainz, Germany). Invited speakers were: Prof. D. W. Hutmacher (Queensland Univ. of Technology, Australia), Prof. P. Fratzl (Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces, Research Campus Golm, Potsdam, Germany), Prof. U. Gross (Free Univ. of Berlin, Germany) and Prof. J. Kirkpatrick (University of Mainz, Germany). The program of the conference is available here. (Click images to enlarge)
DGBM Erlangen DGBM Erlangen DGBM Erlangen DGBM Erlangen DGBM Erlangen
DGBM Erlangen DGBM Erlangen
Visit from Vienna

September 2013


        • DVM Working Group "Reliability of Implant Materials and Biostructures"
          The meeting of the Working Group (WG) "Reliability of Implant Materials and Biostructures" of the German Association for Materials Research and Testing (DVM) was held at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, on 25th September 2013. The meeting was organised by the WG leader Prof. Claudia Fleck (Technical University of Berlin) and hosted by Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini (Institute of Biomaterials, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg). The program of the meeting can be seen here. In the photos, Prof. Boccaccini with Prof. Claudia Fleck. (Click images to enlarge)
DVM Working Group Meeting DVM Working Group Meeting
Visit from Buenos Aires
        • Prof. Boccaccini visits University of Sevilla, Spain
          On 13th September Prof. Boccaccini visited the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials at University of Sevilla, Spain. In addition to attending the presentation of the final projects of students E. J. Gil Fernández and G. J. Pérez Jurado (who carried out their research projects at the Institute of Biomaterials in Erlangen earlier this year), he discussed collaborations in the field of coating for metallic scaffolds with Profs. Juan Pavon, Yadir Torres and Jose A. Rodriguez (photo). (Click image to enlarge)
Prof. Boccaccini visits University of Sevilla, Spain
        • Prof. Boccaccini at EUROMAT 2013, Sevilla, Spain
          On 10-14 September, Prof. Boccaccini attended the European Congress and Exhibition on Advanced Materials and Processes (EUROMAT 2013) held in Sevilla, Spain, where he co-organised the symposium: "Bioinspired and Functional Materials for Tissue Engineering"  together with Prof. J. Mano (Univ. of Minho, Portugal) and Prof. J. Groll (Univ. of Wuerzburg, Germany). Prof. Boccaccini presented the "highlight lecture" entitled: "Evaluation of cross-linked alginate-gelatine matrices for biofabrication", presenting recent results of our Emerging Fields Initiative project TOPbiomat. Prof. Boccaccini also presented the lecture: "Poly(3-hydroxyoctanoate), a potential material for cardiac tissue engineering" based on a collaboration with the group of Dr. Ipsita Roy (University of Westminster, UK). In the photo Prof. Boccaccini with colleagues Dr F. A. Lasagni (Center for Advanced Aerospace Technologies, Sevilla, Spain) and Prof. A. F. Lasagni (Technical University Dresden, Germany). In the other photos, Prof. Boccaccini with Prof. Joao Mano (Univ. of Minho, Portugal, co-organiser of the workshop), with Dr Nere Garmendia (Fundación Cetena-CEMITEC,  Spain), with Dr Aranzazu Díaz and Ms Lourdes Ramiro Gutierrez (Materials Science Institute of Sevilla, Spain). (Click images to enlarge)
Prof. Boccaccini at EUROMAT 2013, Sevilla, Spain Prof. Boccaccini at EUROMAT 2013, Sevilla, Spain Prof. Boccaccini at EUROMAT 2013, Sevilla, Spain Prof. Boccaccini at EUROMAT 2013, Sevilla, Spain Prof. Boccaccini at EUROMAT 2013, Sevilla, Spain
Visit of Dr. Falk

 August 2013

        • Visit from Croatia
          Prof. Dr. Neven Zarkovic of the "Rudjer Boskovic Institute" in Zagreb (Croatia) visited our Institute this week in the framework of our DAAD funded collaborative project "Cu-Bioglass in bone regeneration strategies". The collaboration with Prof. Zarkovic and his team at the Laboratory of Oxidative Stress focuses on the advanced biological characterisation of Cu-containing bioactive glasses. Visits of young researchers are scheduled for 2013 and the continuation of the project is planned for next year. In the photo: Dr. R. Detsch, Dipl.-Ing. A. Hoppe, Prof. Zarkovic and Prof. A. R. Boccaccini (Click image to enlarge)
Visit from Croatia
        • Visit from Argentina
          Juan P. Cattalini, PhD student at the Department of Pharmaceutical Technology, University of Buenos Aires (UBA), Argentina, is visiting our Institute in the framework of our collaborative project: "Design and development of novel matrices for tissue engineering and/or drug delivery for pathologies of high social and economic impact", led by Prof. Viviana Mouriño (UBA, Argentina) and Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini. The project is funded by the International Bureau of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) in Germany, and the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovative Production in Argentina. It involves the exchange of senior and junior researchers and has as main aim the development of multifunctional bioactive matrices in three dimensions (scaffolds) made from natural polymers and bioactive glass nanoparticles allowing the advantageous combination of therapeutic drug release and tissue regeneration in the same system. The following publication has resulted from this collaboration:

          Mouriño V, Cattalini JP, Roether JA, Dubey P, Roy I, Boccaccini AR., Composite polymer-bioceramic scaffolds with drug delivery capability for bone tissue engineering, Expert Opin Drug Deliv. 2013 in press. (Click image to enlarge)
Visit from Argentina
        • Visits from France
          These days in August we received the visit of two researchers from France.
          Dr Aldo Leal-Egaña from CEA Grenoble, Physics of the cytoskeleton and morphogenesis Group, is visiting to discuss further research collaboration in the field of cell-biomaterial interactions for regenerative medicine, following our previous collaboration that led to the publication: Leal-Egaña, A., Díaz-Cuenca, A. Boccaccini, A. R., Tuning of Cell–Biomaterial Anchorage for Tissue Regeneration, Adv. Mater.  (2013) in press.
          Dr Yann Fredholm, a researcher at Noraker -Innovative Bone Substitutes, Lyon, is visiting our Institute in the context of our collaboration in the field of bioactive glasses as part of the research activities of the EU ITN project BIOBONE. (Click images to enlarge)
Aldo with Prof. Boccaccini Dr Yann Fredholm from Noraker
        • Visit from Argentina
          Dr. Alberto Bolgiani, of "Hospital Aleman", Buenos Aires, Argentina, visited our Institute in August. A collaboration with Dr  Bolgiani's group on the development of novel polymer nanocomposite patches for wound healing applications is being planned which includes also collaborative research with Prof. E. Hermida of National University of San Martin, Argentina, another recent visitor of our Institute. (Click image to enlarge)
Dr.Alberto Bolgiani of Hospital Aleman, Argentina

        • Student successes in London
          Andrea Bagdadi and Pooja Basnett, PhD students based at the University of Westminster, UK, with Dr Ipsita Roy as main supervisor, have recently passed their PhD oral examination. Both were co-supervised by Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini. Andrea and Pooja carried out projects involving the development and applications of biopolymers for soft tissue engineering and cardiovascular devices. (Click images to enlarge)
Andrea Bagdadi Pooja Basnett
        • BioMat paper No. 100
          The recent paper in the journal Tissue Engineering "C", the result of a successful collaboration with the group of Prof. R. Horch, Prof. U. Kneser (now Univ. of Heidelberg) and Dr A. Arkudas (Department of Plastic and Hand Surgery, University of Erlangen Medical Center, Erlangen), Prof. P. Greil and Dr. T. Fey (Ceramics and Glass Institute, Erlangen) and Ms P. Newby (PhD student, Imperial College London) was the publication No. 100 of our Institute since its establishment on 1st October 2009:

          Arkudas, A., Balzer, A., Buehrer, G, Arnold, I., Hoppe, A., Detsch, R., Newby, P., Fey, T., Greil, P., Horch, R. E., Boccaccini, A. R., Kneser, U., Evaluation of angiogenesis of bioactive glass in the AV loop model, Tissue Eng. Part C: Methods 19 (2013) 479-486.

July 2013

        • "Emerging Fields" TOPbiomat project meeting
          The last meeting of the project TOPbiomat funded by the "Emerging Fields Initiative" of the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg took place on 24th July at the Institute of Biomaterials organised by Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini. (Click image to enlarge)
          A discussion of the plan of research activities for the rest of 2013 and 2014 was discussed. The 3 more recent papers of our research collaboration are:

          Arkudas, A., Balzer, A., Buehrer, G, Arnold, I., Hoppe, A., Detsch, R., Newby, P., Fey, T., Greil, P., Horch, R. E., Boccaccini, A. R., Kneser, U., Evaluation of angiogenesis of bioactive glass in the AV loop model, Tissue Eng. Part C: Methods 19 (2013) 479-486. doi:10.1089/ten.tec.2012.0572.

          Vielreicher M, Schürmann S, Detsch R, Schmidt MA, Buttgereit A, Boccaccini A, Friedrich O., Taking a deep look: modern microscopy technologies to optimize the design and functionality of biocompatible scaffolds for tissue engineering in regenerative medicine, J R Soc Interface. 2013 Jul 17;10(86):20130263. doi: 10.1098/rsif.2013.0263.

          Leal-Egaña, A., Díaz-Cuenca, A. Boccaccini, A. R., Tuning of Cell–Biomaterial Anchorage for Tissue Regeneration, Adv. Mater. (2013) in press, doi: 10.1002/adma.201301227

EFI


        • Glass and Nanotechnology - A Worldwide Perspective
          The special issue "Glass and Nanotechnology - A Worldwide Perspective" has been recently published in the International Journal of Applied Glass Science (IJAGS). This special issue was co-edited by Prof. A. R. Boccaccini together with Prof. J. Ballato (Clemson University, USA) and Prof. J. Qiu (South China University of Technology, China). The special issue contains the review paper "Nanoscale bioactive glasses in medical applications", M. Erol-Taygun, K. Zheng, A. R. Boccaccini, Int. J. Appl. Glass. Sci. 4 (2013) 136-148.
        • End of Summer Term 2013 at our Institute
          The end of the summer term 2013 was marked by holding the Institute's Scientific Seminar on 19th July (see photo) with participation of all members and students in the "Electron Microscopy" (led by Prof. Spiecker) and "Erlangen Biomaterials" (led by Prof. Boccaccini) research groups (photo).
          The day before, the Summer Grill Party of the Institute took place in a glorious summer day in Erlangen, it was a success too (see photos). (Click images to enlarge)

          Institute seminar July 2013 Summer BBQ July 2013 Summer BBQ July 2013 Summer BBQ July 2013
        • Visit of Prof. M. El Fray (Erasmus lecturer)
          Prof. Mirka El Fray, Director of the West Pomeranian Center of Advanced Technologies and Professor at the Polymer Institute, West Pomeranian University of Technology (ZUT) in Szczecin (Poland), visited the Institute of Biomaterials on 15th-19th July 2013. In the framework of an ERASMUS lectureship, she delivered lectures on "Biopolymers in Medicine". Prof. Boccaccini and members of our Institute discussed with Prof. Mirka El Fray the continuing research collaborations and student and research exchanges between Erlangen and the Polymer Institute at ZUT. (Click image to enlarge)
ei_fray_boccaccini
        • Prof. Boccaccini in the Editorial Board of "Bioengineering
          Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini has been elected member of the Editorial Board of the new journal "Bioengineering". Bioengineering (publisher: MDPI, ISSN 2306-5354) is an international scientific open access journal publishing on the science and technology of bioengineering, including biomaterials. The first issue will be released in 2013.

        • Visit from Nagoya Institute of Technology
          The Europe Liaison Office of NITECH was inaugurated at the Engineering Campus of the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU) on 16th July. In the photo: Prof. Dr. Marion Merklein (Dean of Faculty of Engineering, FAU) and Prof. Ken-ichi Kakimoto (Director, NITech Europe Liaison Office). Last row from left: Prof. Dr. Christoph J. Brabec (FAU) Prof. Dr. Aldo R. Boccaccini (FAU), Prof. Dr. Peter Greil (FAU), FAU Deputy president Prof. Dr. Christoph Korbmacher, FAU President Prof. Dr. Karl-Dieter Grüske, NITech President Prof. Dr. Minoru Takahashi, Prof. Dr. Yuji Iwamoto (Director, Center for Promotion of Internationalization, NITech), Prof. Dr. Sho Hagio (Vice Director, Center for Promotion of Internationalization, NITech), Akira Mizutani (General consul of Japan). (Click image to enlarge)
nitech-kooperation


        • On the occasion, Prof. Yuji Iwamoto (in the photo with Prof. Boccaccini), Department of Frontier Materials, Graduate School of Engineering, Nagoya Institute of Technology (NITECH) and Director of the International Center at NITECH, visited our Institute. We are collaborating with Prof. Iwamoto's group in the field of porous silica based materials for bone tissue engineering scaffolds. This collaboration is part of our on-going collaborative projects with NITECH in the framework of the JSPS International Training Program led by NITECH "Institute of Ceramics Research and Education". (Click image to enlarge)
guest_japan
        • Meeting of EU project BIOSCENT
          On 11-12 July 2013, the 54-month General Meeting of the FP7 EU project "BIOactive highly porous and injectable Scaffolds controlling stem cell recruitment, proliferation and differentiation and enabling angiogenesis for Cardiovascular Engineered Tissues" (BIOSCENT) took place at our Institute, organized by Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini. The consortium is developing advanced scaffolds to control stem cell recruitment, proliferation and differentiation and to enable angiogenesis for cardiovascular engineered tissues. The scaffolds, which mimic nature by inducing the heart to heal itself, will then be administered to the heart by means of a sutured patch or an injectable solution. (Click image to enlarge)
Meeting of EU project BIOSCENT
        • Visit from University of Pisa
          Prof. Elisabetta Rosselini, Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Pisa, Italy, visited our Institute on 11-12 July. Prof. Rosselini is the scientific coordinator of the FP7 EU project "BIOactive highly porous and injectable Scaffolds controlling stem cell recruitment, proliferation and differentiation and enabling angiogenesis for Cardiovascular ENgineered Tissues" (BIOSCENT). Prof. Boccaccini hosted the 54-month General Meeting of BIOSCENT in Erlangen this month.. (Click image to enlarge)
Visitor from Pisa (Prof.Elisabetta Rosselini)


        • Prof. Boccaccini: Associate Editor of Int. Journal Appl. Glass Sci.
          Prof. Boccaccini has been named Associate Editor of the International Journal of Applied Glass Science (IJAGS). IJAGS is the only journal of its kind, dealing with the application of glass science and engineering across the entire materials spectrum. The journal is associated with the American Ceramic Society.
        • Visit from Spain
          In the context of a fellowship awarded by the European Virtual Institute on Knowledge-based Multifunctional Materials (KMM-VIN), Ms Veronica Lopez (PhD student) from the Institute of Ceramics Technology (ITC), Castellon, Spain, visited our Institute in June-July 2013. She carried out a research project focusing on the analysis of the bioactivity of bioactive glass coatings developed at ITC under supervision of Dr E. Sanchez. (Click image to enlarge)
veronica_visitor_spain-boccaccini

        • Prof. Boccaccini: keynote speaker at ICG 2013 in Prague
          Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini presented a Key Talk in the Session (TC 05) "Vitrification of hazardous and nuclear wastes" at the 23rd International Congress on Glass, held in Prague, Czech Republic on July 1-5, 2013. The topic of his presentation was: "Glass-ceramics from hazardous and non-hazardous waste: past, present and for the future", a collaboration with R. K. Chinnam (PhD) student. In addition, the poster entitled: "Development of novel mesoporous silica-based bioactive glasses with enhanced mechanical properties for bone tissue engineering" with Anahi Philippart (PhD student) as first author, was presented. Both presentations are part of our current project "GLACERCO". Prof. Boccaccini also chaired the Sessions: "Waste glass structure and characterisation" and "Waste form processing" at the conference. (Click image to enlarge)
Prof. Boccaccini at ICG2013 Prague

Poster Heraeus Prof. Boccaccini: invited speaker at "539. WE-Heraeus Seminar

June 2013

        • Prof. Boccaccini invited speaker in Switzerland
          Prof. Boccaccini was an invited speaker at the "European CLINAM (European Foundation for Clinical Nanomedicine) and ETPN (European Technology Platform on Nanomedicine) Summit", held in Basel (Switzerland) on June 23-26, 2013. He presented the lecture "Development of Bioactive Nanostructured 3D scaffolds for Regenerative Medicine". In the photo, Prof. Boccaccini with Prof. C. Alexiou (Chair for Nanomedicine, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg) at CLINAM on 24th June. (Click image to enlarge)
Prof. Boccaccini at European CLINAM (European Foundation for Clinical Nanomedicine) and ETPN (European Technology Platform on Nanomedicine)
        • Visit from Australia
          Dr Thomas Fiedler, School of Engineering, University of Newcastle, Australia, visited our Institute on 18th June. There is a current collaboration between the group of Dr Fiedler and Prof Boccaccini in the field of modeling of the mechanical properties of 3D porous scaffolds [1] and future collaborative research was discussed during the visit.

          [1] Fiedler Thomas, Belova Irina Veniaminovna, Murch Graeme Elliott, Roether J A, Boccaccini A R, Tailoring elastic properties of PLGA/TiO2 biomaterials, Computational Materials Science, 61 283-286 (2012). (Click image to enlarge)
Visit from Australia
        • 'Electrophoretic Deposition of Nanomaterials' (J. H. Dickerson and A. R. Boccaccini)
          Our book on "Electrophoretic Deposition of Nanomaterials" (Springer), co-edited with Prof. J. Dickerson (Brookhaven National Laboratory, USA) and Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini (Institut of Biomaterials, Erlangen) published in 2012, was one of the top 25% most downloaded eBooks in the relevant Springer eBook Collection in 2012. More information about the book and the table of contents can be found in the book's webpage.
        • Visit from Egypt
          We are currently hosting Ms Marwa Talal, visiting student from the German University in Cairo (GUC), Egypt. Ms Talal studies Pharmacy and Biotechnology and is carrying out an internship at our Institute in the field of biopolymers for cardiac regeneration. (Click image to enlarge)
Visit from Egypt
        • 5th Scientific Seminar of the "North-Bavaria Biomaterials Alliance (NBBA)
          The 5th scientific seminar of the North-Bavaria Biomaterials Alliance (NBBA) was held on 12th June 2013 at the University of Würzburg, hosted by Prof. Jürgen Groll, with participation of professors and young researchers from Würzburg, Erlangen and Bayreuth. Representing the Erlangen Institute of Biomaterials, Mr Luis Cordero (pictured) and Dr Menti Goudouri presented short talks and posters about their research projects. Mr Luis Cordero moderated the Erlangen session. The complete program of the seminar is available here. In the photos some of the participants during the lectures and the poster session. In one of the pictures three founders of NBBA Prof. T. Scheibel (Bayreuth), Prof. Groll (Würzburg) and Prof. Boccaccini (Erlangen). The 6th NBBA Seminar will be held in Bayreuth in the Winter Term (October 2013). (Click images to enlarge)
5th North-Bavaria Biomaterials Alliance (NBBA) Seminar 5th North-Bavaria Biomaterials Alliance (NBBA) Seminar
5th North-Bavaria Biomaterials Alliance (NBBA) Seminar 5th North-Bavaria Biomaterials Alliance (NBBA) Seminar

        • Visit from Buenos Aires
          On 10-15 June 2013 we received the visit of Dr Elida Beatriz Hermida, Professor of Materials Science and Director of Research at Universidad Nacional de San Martin, Argentina. Our two universities have signed a collaborative agreement which promotes the interactions and exchanges of students and academics. A collaboration in the field of biopolymer-bioactive glass composite scaffolds for wound healing applications has been established between our research groups. (Click image to enlarge)
Prof.Dr Elida Beatriz Hermida, Argentina
        • Prof. Boccaccini: invited speaker in San Diego, USA
          Prof. Boccaccini presented the invited talk "Bioactive glasses exhibiting controlled therapeutic ion release for bone regeneration" in Symposium 24: Nanostructured Bioceramics and Ceramics for Biomedical Applications, at the PacRim 10 Conference in Ceramic and Glass Technology held in San Diego (USA) on 2-7 June 2013. Prof. Boccaccini was also co-organiser of the Symposium "Glasses and Ceramics for Nuclear and Hazardous Waste Treatment" at PacRim 10, where he presented the paper "Progress in the development of glass-ceramics from silicate waste focusing on functional materials" a contributed paper in collaboration with C. Rama Krishna Satish and Dr. Enrico Bernardo (University of Padova, Italy), in the framework of Glacerco ITN EU project.
          Prof. Boccaccini was also invited to speak at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD), Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering on 5th June, where he presented the talk "Bioactive Nanostructured 3D-scaffolds for Bone Tissue Engineering". (Click images to enlarge)
PACRIM10 San Diego, USA PACRIM10 San Diego, USA

May 2013

        • Collaboration with Croatia
          The project in the field of Cu-doped bioactive glasses in bone regeneration strategies, a collaboration with Dr. Neven Zarkovic and Dr Lidija Milkovic of Rudjer Boskovic Institute in Zagreb (Croatia), has been approved by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) for funding.
          Dipl.-Ing. Alexander Hoppe, Dr.-Ing. Rainer Detsch and Prof. Dr.-Ing. habil. Aldo R. Boccaccini are involved in this project which is a continuation of our previous research and involves the characterisation of Cu-containing bioactive glasses and the investigation of cellular response and vascularisation in contact with such novel silicate glasses.
        • International visits
          These days we are hosting international students from UK, Italy and Greece. Ms Giorgia Franchin, Master student from the University of Padova, Italy, working in the group of Prof. Paolo Colombo visited our laboratories to investigate the bioactivity of calcium silicate scaffolds. Mr Dimitris Papageorgiou, PhD student at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (ATU), Greece, is visiting our group in the framework of our collaborative DAAD funded IKYDA project: "Novel bionanocomposites for bone tissue engineering". This project is led by Prof. Dimitrios Bikiaris from the Chemistry Department at ATU and Prof. Boccaccini. Finally, Harshit Porwal, from Nanoforce Technology Ltd and Queen Mary, University of London, who works on his PhD project under supervision of Prof. Mike Reece, is visiting the Erlangen Institute of Biomaterials to investigate the bioactive behaviour of a new family of bioactive glass composites. This project is carried out in the framework of the EU ITN project GLACERCO. In the photos, Prof. Boccaccini with the visiting students. (Click images to enlarge)
Visitor from University Padova, Italy Visitor from Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece Visitor from Nanoforce Technology, UK
        • Prof. Boccaccini at the German-Argentinian Scientific Meeting in Berlin
          Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini, as member of the Advisory Board of the Network of Argentinian Scientists in Germany (RCAA), participated at the Meeting of the German-Argentinian Commission on Science and Technology in Berlin on 7-8 May 2013. The long-standing strong collaboration in science and technology between Germany and Argentina was highlighted and plans for future research collaborative schemes were discussed. The Minister of Science and Technology of Argentina Dr Lino Baranao was present during the discussions. Prof. Boccaccini participated in the meetings of two working groups: "Engineering" and "Environmental Science and Technology". (Click image to enlarge)
Prof. Boccaccini at the German-Argentine Scientific Meeting in Berlin
        • Visit of Dr. Barbara Shollock
          Dr Barbara Shollock, Department of Materials, Imperial College London (UK), visited the Institute of Biomaterials on 13-15 May 2013. Dr Shollock presented the lecture "Metals in challenging environments: advanced characterisation of metallic surfaces" in the framework of the Materials Colloquium of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering. Dr Shollock discussed with Prof. A. R. Boccaccini the Erasmus exchange program between the two Departments which has been very successful since its establishment in 2010 following the move of Prof. Boccaccini from Imperial College London to the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg. (Click images to enlarge)
Visit of Dr. Barbara Shollock Visit of Dr. Barbara Shollock
        • EuroBiomat in Weimar
          Prof. A. R. Boccaccini was a member of the organising committee and session chair (Biomaterials Applications) at the EuroBioMat 2013 conference held in Weimar, Germany, on 23-24 April, 2013. Bapi Sarker (PhD student) presented an oral contribution entitled "Fabrication of Alginate-Gelatin Cross-linked Microcapsules and Evaluation of the Microstructure and Biocompability for Bone Tissue Regeneration" a collaboration with D. Heusinger, S. Rath and R. Detsch in the framework of the Emerging Fields Initiative project TOPbiomat. Prof. Boccaccini presented also a poster contribution entitled "Novel poly(butylene succinate) nanocomposites containing silica-nanotubes and strontium nanoparticles for tissue engineering applications", the result of our research collaborations with Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (Prof. D. Bikiaris). In the photos, Prof. Boccaccini and Bapi Sarker and Prof. Boccaccini with Prof. K. Jandt (Conference chairman) and Dr T. F. Keller (Conference vice-chairman). (Click images to enlarge)
EuroBiomat in Weimar EuroBiomat in Weimar
        • Prof Boccaccini: invited speaker in Madrid
          Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini was an invited speaker at the International Meeting "Ageing and Osteoporosis: Current situation and future perspectives" which was held on 29th April 2013 in Madrid (Spain). Prof. Boccaccini's presentation was entitled "Progress in the development of bioactive materials with vascularization potential for bone regeneration".
          The meeting was organised by Fundacion Ramon Areces of Spain and coordinated by Prof. Maria Vallet Regi of University Complutense of Madrid (Spain), here pictured with Prof. Boccaccini. The program of the Meeting is available here. This was an international activity in the framework of the Agening Network led by Prof. Vallet Regi and Prof. J. Planell (Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya. Barcelona). (Click images to enlarge)
Prof Boccaccini: invited speaker in Madrid Prof Boccaccini: invited speaker in Madrid

April 2013

        • "Emerging Fields" Project TOPbiomat: Master Thesis Completed
          On 25th April, Mr Tobias Zehnder (student of Materials Science and Engineering) presented successfully the results of his Master thesis project entitled "Characterisation and processing of alginate-based hydrogels for application in 3-D plotting".
          This research project was carried out under supervision of Dr. Rainer Detsch, Dr. Jochen Kaschta (Institute of Polymer Materials), Prof. Dirk Schubert (Institute of Polymer Materials) and Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini (pictured with Mr Zehnder), as a collaborative project in the framework of the FAU Emerging Fields Initiative Project TOPbiomat. (Click image to enlarge)
Emerging Fields Project TOPbiomat: Master Thesis Completed

        • Argentinian-Bavarian Initiative on Science, Technology and Innovation in Environmental Science and Technology
          The first meeting of the Argentinean-Bavarian Initiative on Science, Technology and Innovation in Environmental Science and Technology (ABIEST) was held on 15th April 2013 in Erlangen, organized by the Bavarian University Centre for Latin America (BAYLAT) and coordinated by Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini (Institute of Biomaterials). Prof. Andrea Pagni, director of BAYLAT opened the meeting. Participants of different Bavarian Universities and Universities of Applied Sciences with interest in the field of Environmental Science and Technology and a representative of UmweltCluster Bavaria attended this meeting in which a statement of interest was signed to establish ABIEST as the instrument of interaction between Argentinean and Bavarian researchers in this field. Contacts with the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovative Production (MinCyT) of Argentina and the Bavaria State Ministry of Sciences, Research and the Arts have been established. (Click image to enlarge)
7th EFI Seminar

        • Emerging Fields Initiative (EFI): 7th "TOPbiomat" Scientific Seminar
          The 7th Scientific Seminar of the "TOPbiomat" project ("Bioactive materials, cell and tissue printing: New therapeutic approaches for organ level tissue engineering and regenerative medicine") of the Emerging Fields Initiative of the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg took place on 17th April 2013 at the Institute of Biomaterials, hosted by Prof. A. R. Boccaccini. The invited speaker was Dr. Shahram Ghanaati (REPAIR-Lab, Institute of Pathology, Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz, Germany, and Clinic for Maxillofacial and Plastic Surgery, Johann Wolfgang Goethe University, Frankfurt/Main, Germany). He presented the lecture"Systematic analysis of animal and human tissue reaction to bone substitute materials and membranes for use in dental surgery: Histological and histomophometrical methodologies". In the photo Dr R. Detsch, Dr Shahram Ghanaati and Prof. Boccaccini. (Click images to enlarge)

          7th EFI Seminar 7th EFI Seminar
        • Prof. Boccaccini visits University of Twente (NL)
          In the framework of a Short Term Scientific Mission (STSM) of the COST Action MP1005 "From nano to macro biomaterials (design, processing, characterization, modeling) and applications to stem cells regenerative orthopedic and dental medicine (NAMABIO)", Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini visited the MIRA Institute for Biomedical Technology and Technical Medicine, Department of Tissue Regeneration, University of Twente (Netherlands) on 8-13 April 2013. He presented the lecture "Bioactive Materials for Tissue Engineering: Progress and Challenges". Discussions about new research projects and collaborations were also held with Professor Pamela Habibovic (pictured with Prof. Boccaccini) and her colleagues at MIRA. (Click image to enlarge)


        • Prof. Boccaccini in BAYLAT Board
          Prof. Boccaccini has been elected member of the Board of the Bavarian University Centre for Latin America (BAYLAT). BAYLAT is a service centre to support the international collaboration and networking among Baviarian and Latin American universities.

 

 

 

        • Prof. Boccaccini: invited speaker at PacRim 10, San Diego (USA)
          Prof. Boccaccini will present the invited talk "Bioactive glasses exhibiting controlled therapeutic ion release for bone regeneration" in Symposium 24: Nanostructured Bioceramics and Ceramics for Biomedical Applications, at the PacRim 10 Conference in Ceramic and Glass Technology to be held in San Diego (USA) on 2-7 June 2013. Prof. Boccaccini is also co-organiser of Symposium "Glasses and Ceramics for Nuclear and Hazardous Waste Treatment" at PacRim 10, where he will present the paper "Progress in the development of glass-ceramics from silicate waste focusing on functional materials" a contributed paper in collaboration with C. Rama Krishna Satish and Dr. Enrico Bernardo (University of Padova, Italy), in the framework of Glacerco project.

        • Prof. Boccaccini will present key talk at ICG 2013 in Prague
          Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini will present a Key Talk in the Session (TC 05) "Vitrification of hazardous and nuclear wastes" at the 23rd International Congress on Glass, to be held in Prague (Czech Republic) on July 1-5, 2013. The topic of his presentation will be "Glass-ceramics from hazardous and non-hazardous waste: past, present and for the future".

        • Prof. Boccaccini: Invited Speaker in Madrid
          Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini will be an invited speaker at the International Meeting "Ageing and Osteoporosis: Current situation and future perspectives" to be held on 29th April 2013. The meeting is organised by Fundacion Ramon Areces of Spain and coordinated by Prof. Maria Vallet Regi of University Complutense of Madrid (Spain).


March 2013

        • Prof. A. R. Boccaccini at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology
          Prof. A. R. Boccaccini visited the Institute of Functional Interfaces (IFG) at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) on 21st March 2013. He presented the lecture "About surfaces and pores: progress in the development of bioactive scaffolds for tissue engineering" and discussed collaborations between the Institute of Biomaterials and IFG-KIT. In the photo, Prof. Boccaccini and Dr Martin E. Silvestre (IFG, KIT). (Click image to enlarge)

        • Emerging Fields Initiative (EFI): 6th "TOPbiomat" Scientific Seminar
          The 6th Scientific Seminar of the "TOPbiomat" project ("Bioactive materials, cell and tissue printing: New therapeutic approaches for organ level tissue engineering and regenerative medicine") of the Emerging Fields Initiative of the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg took place on 19th March 2013 at the Biologikum, FAU, hosted by Prof. U. Sonnewald (Biochemistry, Department Biology, FAU) and Prof. A. R. Boccaccini (Institute of Biomaterials, FAU). The program of the seminar is here. The invited speaker was Dr. U. Conrad (Dept. of Molecular Genetics, Leibniz Institute of Plant Genetics and Crop Plant Researcher, Stadt Seeland, Sachsen-Anhalt) who delivered a lecture on "Plant-based production, purification and characterisation of spider silk and elastin-like proteins". In the photo Dr Conrad, Prof. Sonnewald and Prof. Boccaccini. (Click images to enlarge)
        • Prof. Boccaccini invited speaker in Norway
          Prof. Boccaccini was one of the invited speakers at the 6th Annual Meeting of the Scandinavian Society for Biomaterials held in Hafjell (Norway) on March 13-15, 2013. Prof Boccaccini delivered the lecture "Bioactive scaffolds for tissue engineering and vascularization". In the photo, Prof. Boccaccini with (centre) Prof. H. J. Haugen (University of Oslo) and president of the Scandinavian Society for Biomaterials, and (left) Dr L.-C. Gerhardt (Philip Research, Netherlands), former post-doctoral collaborator of Prof. Boccaccini at Imperial College London. (Click images to enlarge)
        • Visit from Prague
          Prof. Evzen Amler and Ms Eva Prosecka, M.Sc. (PhD student) from Institute of Biophysics, Charles University in Prague and Institute of Experimental Medicine AS CR, Department of Tissue Engineering in Prague (Czech Republic) visited our Institute this month. Currently there are collaborations with Prof. Amler's group in the framework of EU project BIOSCENT on developing nanofibrous cardiac patches.
          On the other hand, Ms Prosecka is visiting our Institute to work on a project involving the development of polymer-bioactive glass composites for bone tissue engineering. Her visit is funded by COST Action NAMABIO. (Click image to enlarge)



        • Visit from Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
          Ms. Zoi Terzopoulou, Master student of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUT), Chemistry Department, Laboratory of Polymer Chemistry and Technology (Greece) visited out Institute this month. This visit took place in the framework of our DAAD funded IKYDA project "Novel bionanocomposites for bone tissue engineering". This collaborative project enables the exchange of senior and young researchers between our Institute and AUT to carry out experimental studies on the fabrication and characterisation of a range of biodegradable nanocomposites containing silicate and other oxide nanofillers intended for bone tissue engineering. The principal investigators are Prof. D. Bikiaris (AUT) and Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini. (Click image to enlarge)

        • Network of Argentinian Scientists in Germany (RCAA)
          Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini attended the meeting of the Advisory Committee of the Network of Argentinian Scientists in Germany (Red de Cientificos Argentinos en Alemania, RCAA) which was held on 1st March 2013 at the Argentinean Embassy in Berlin. Prof. Boccaccini is the representative of the area "Engineering" to the Advisory Committee of RCAA. (Click image to enlarge)

Emerging Fields Initiative (EFI): 5th "TOPbiomat" Scientific Seminar
The 5th Scientific Seminar of the "TOPbiomat" project ("Bioactive materials, cell and tissue printing: New therapeutic approaches for organ level tissue engineering and regenerative medicine") of the Emerging Fields Initiative of the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg took place on 6th March 2013 at the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, hosted by the Institute of Biomaterials (Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini). The program of the seminar is here. In the photo (from left to right): Prof. A. R. Boccaccini (Institute of Biomaterials, Coordinator of TOPbiomat), Prof. F. Engel (Dept. of Nephropathology), Prof. B. Fabry (Biophysics Group), PD Dr R. Strick (Dept. of Gynecology and Obstetrics), Dr R. Detsch (Institute of Biomaterials). (Click image to enlarge)

5th EFI Seminar 5th EFI Seminar 5th EFI Seminar
        • Students' successes at Imperial College London
          Fatemeh Pishbin and Decheng Meng have successfully passed their PhD examination at the Department of Materials, Imperial College London, UK. Fatemeh's PhD project was on "Development and Characterisation of Bioactive Coatings Based on Biopolymer and Bioactive Glass Obtained by Electrochemical Means", the supervisors were Prof. Mary P. Ryan (Imperial College) and Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini.
          Decheng's PhD project was entitled "Glass-ceramic scaffolds with tailored surface topography and addition bioactive functions for bone tissue engineering", the supervisors were Prof. Peter D. Lee (now at University of Manchester, UK) and Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini.
          We wish both of them much success in their careers!
          In the photos Fatemeh Pishbin, Decheng Meng and Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini. (Click images to enlarge)
Fatemeh and Prof. Boccaccini Decheng and Prof. Boccaccini

February 2013

        • Successful BioMed 2013 in Innsbruck
          The 10th IASTED International Conference on Biomedical Engineering (BioMed 2013), chaired by Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini, was successfully held on February 13 – 15, 2013, in Innsbruck (Austria). The conference was attended by more than 100 participants from 34 different countries. Keynote and invited speakers were Prof. C. James Kirkpatrick (Johannes Gutenberg University, Germany) and Prof. Sian Harding (Imperial College London, UK). The conference included several special sessions. Dr R. Detsch (Institute of Biomaterials) (pictured with Prof. Boccaccini) organised the session on "Rapid Prototyping and Cell Printing for Regenerative Medicine". (Click image to enlarge)
Dr. Detsch and Prof. Boccaccini in Innsbruck
        • Special Section on Electrophoretic Deposition published in the Journal of Physical Chemistry B
          The special section "Electrophoretic Deposition: Fundamentas and Applications" co-edited by Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini (University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany) and Prof. James H. Dickerson (Vanderbilt University, USA) has been published on 14th February 2013 in the Journal of Physical Chemistry B. It can be seen here.

        • Emerging Fields Project Meeting
          On 6th February a progress meeting of the project TOPbiomat funded by the Emerging Fields Initiative (EFI) of the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg took place at the Institute of Biomaterials, coordinated by Prof. A. R. Boccaccini and Dr. R. Detsch. The subprojects involving biomaterial development for biofabrication were discussed, including the projects of Master students currently carrying out their theses in the TOPbiomat field. Results of this research will be presented at the BioMed 2013 conference (13-15 Feb. 2013). (Click image to enlarge)
efi_meeting_2013
        • EU ITN BioBone Workshop in Erlangen
          The 1st Workshop of the EU ITN "BioBone" was successfully organised by Prof. A. R. Boccaccini and held at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg on 23-25 Jan. 2013 with participation of young and senior researchers of the different partner institutions collaborating in the EU ITN BioBone (coordinator: Prof. E. Saiz, Imperial College London, UK). The topic of the Workshop was "New Processing Techniques for Bioceramics" and included presentations of BioBone project members and of invited speakers from Italy, Switzerland, Spain, Austria and France. The program is available here. We thank Valentina Miguez, Preethi Balasubramanian (PhD students), and Dr J. Will, Dr. J. A. Roether and Mr H. Mahler for their great support and participation in the local organizing committee. (Click images to enlarge)

          BioBone 1st Workshop 2013_Erlangen BioBone 1st Workshop 2013_Erlangen BioBone 1st Workshop 2013_Erlangen

January 2013

        • Membership of Forum MedTech Pharma
          Our Institute is now a member of Forum MedTech Pharma e.V., which is also part of the National Strategy "Innovation in Bioengineering" of the German Federal Government. Forum MedTech Pharma is a charitable non-profit making association which offers a unique platform for knowledge exchange and professional contacts facilitating innovation and co-operation in the biomedical sector.
        • Visit of Dr Katerina Aifantis
          Dr Katerina Aifantis visited our Insitute on 17.1.2013. Dr Aifantis holds an ERC Starting Grant 211166 for studying the mechanical behavior of materials as they transition from the micro to the nanoscale with applications in bio-engineering and Li-ion batteries. The majority of the grant research is carried out at the Lab of Mechanics and Materials at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece. Our Institute collaborates with Dr Aifantis in the field of nanomechanics of soft matrices for tissue engineering, which follows previous research of Dr Aifantis and collaborators in this field [1]. (Click image to enlarge)
          [1] Koufaki N., et al., Biofabrication 3, 045004, 2011.
visit-of-katerina-aifantis
        • Prof. A. R. Boccaccini elected Editorial Board Member of "Scientific Reports"
          Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini has been appointed member of the Editorial Board of the journal Scientific Reports. Scientific Reports is a research publication from the publishers of the journal Nature, covering all areas of the natural sciences. Scientific Reports is hosted on nature.com, it is published by Nature Publishing Group.