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Biomaterials research program
In Turku, there is a long and rich history on natural, engineering and medical sciences and thus, the development of modern biomaterials has been established within a fruitful and multidisciplinary environment. Basic research performed at the Åbo Akademi University and University of Turku is linked to the applied research carried out at the Faculty of Medicine (University of Turku). The intensive networking of the Biomaterials Research Program has prepared medical and dental professionals for the introduction of new biomaterials and their clinical use.
The work of the Biomaterials Research Program is focused to basic and applied research with a special emphasis placed on the establishment of clinical applications for novel materials and their subsequent commercialization. The following main areas are covered:
Development of biomechanically and biologically optimized non-metallic load-bearing implants for maxillo-facial surgery, head and neck surgery and orthopaedics.
Development of dental biomaterials for minimal invasive oral rehabilitation.
Inorganic–organic hybrid compounds and their use in biomaterial applications.
Basic and applied research on development of bioactive glass and its composites.
Development of sol-gel processed biomaterials for controlled drug release and specific coatings for metallic and composite implants.
There are nine research groups in the Program covering the fields of basic research, applied research with preclinical and clinical evaluation of novel materials and their combinations. The research groups of the Åbo Akademi University cover predominantly basic research in inorganic chemistry and polymer chemistry.
The main focus of the research groups of the University of Turku is in applied research. Turku Biomaterials Centre – as a research group – has a special role in the Research Program. Turku Biomaterials Centre focuses on some spearhead areas in the research and its main tasks are in the improvement of possibilities for the commercialization of the academic research results. The research groups of the Program belong to two Centres of Excellences organized by the Academy of Finland and they have a large international network, including the Scandinavian NIOM (Nordic Institute of Dental Materials, Haslum, Norway) Biomaterials Network.
Read More: http://research.utu.fi/bmk