Antibacterial and low-abrasive coatings on sliding surfaces of orthopedic implants

如今，假体周围感染的数量稳步上升，无论是在临床上还是在社会经济方面，都对现代患者护理提出了严峻的挑战。因此，本建议(知识转移项目)的目的是为机械高应力内膜修复体开发非常有效的滑动表面，同时显示出有效的抗感染性能。通往这种多功能表面的大致路线是DFG先前项目的结果，在该项目中，我们已经探索了研究的技术和生物学基础。据我们所知，我们创新的多功能滑动面在全球范围内从未实现过。为了实现我们的目标，我们需要进一步开发技术，将多功能薄膜涂层有效地转移到光滑的金属或陶瓷植入物表面，并进一步改进我们基于离子束注入的UHMWPE向DLC的转化。由于在最初植入组织时的抗菌要求，我们依赖于先前经过医学验证的植入物材料涂层，然后我们提供经过生物优化的银浓度。为了确保我们的研究结果及时转化为医疗应用，所有与批准相关的细节，如生物力学磨损行为、潜在磨损颗粒的物理和细胞生物学特性等，将与我们的工业合作伙伴Aesculap Ag密切合作，详细调查并符合标准。为了调查多功能表面在准体内条件下的黏附行为，我们通过一种单芯片容器工具扩展了我们的研究，其中可以在甚至脉动流动条件下研究植入细胞的相互作用和黏附过程。此外，我们计划研究在植入材料和磨损碎片存在的情况下，淋巴细胞与模型膜和淋巴管内皮细胞的相互作用。成功实现这项包含许多复杂技术和研究领域的提议的最重要的先决条件是，协同结合来自专门大学研究小组的每个参与合作伙伴和一家国际知名的德国植入物制造商的现有专业知识。在相关大学和行业合作伙伴之间经济上可行的、系统的知识转移的基础上，本提议将为成功的医疗技术开发和应用触发新的和长期的激励。因此，它的目标也是可持续地保持甚至创造该行业的就业机会。该项目的目标是开发出高效的抗感染滑动表面，用于内固定。它具有极其重要的临床和医疗保健意义，并为预防和治疗数量稳步增加的假体周围感染开辟了新的创新选择。

The steadily rising number of periprothetic infections nowadays represents a serious challenge for modern patient care, in both clinical as well as socio-economical terms. It is thus the aim of the present proposal (knowledge transfer project) to develop very efficient sliding surfaces for mechanically highly stressed endoprotheses, which at the same time exhibit efficient anti-infectious properties. The outlined route towards such multifunctional surfaces is the result of a previous DFG project, where the technical and biological grounds of our research had been explored. To our knowledge, our innovative, multi-functional sliding surfaces have worldwide never been realized before. To achieve our goals, we need to further develop the technologies to effectively transfer the multi-functional thin film coatings to smooth metal or ceramic implant surfaces and to further improve our ion beam implantation based transformation of UHMWPE into DLC.Due to the antibacterial requirements during the initial implantation into the tissue, we rely on the coating of previously medically proven implant materials, which we then supply with biologically optimized silver concentrations. To ensure the timely transfer of our findings into medical applications, all approval-relevant details like biomechanical abrasion behavior, physical and cell biological properties of the potential wear particles etc. will be investigated in close cooperation in detail and conforming to standards with our industrial partner, the Aesculap AG.To investigate the adhesion behavior of the multi-functional surfaces under quasi in vivo conditions, we expand our investigations by a vessel-on-a-chip tool where the implant cell interaction and adhesion processes can be studied under even pulsatile flow conditions. Also, we plan to investigate the interaction of lymphocytes with model membranes and lymphatic endothelial cells in the presence of implant material and wear debris. The most important prerequisite for a successful realization of the proposal comprising many complex technological and research areas is the synergetic combination of the existing expertise profiles of each of the participating cooperation partners from specialized university research groups and an internationally renowned German implant manufacturer.On the basis of an economically feasible, systematic knowledge transfer between the involved universities and the industry partner, the present proposal will trigger new and long term incentives for a successful medico-technical exploitation and applications. It thus is also aiming towards the sustainable preservation or even creation of jobs in this industry. The goal of the proposed project is to pioneer with highly efficient anti-infective sliding surfaces for endoprotheses. It is of utmost clinical and health care importance and opens up new innovative options for the prevention and therapy of the steadily increasing number of periprosthetic infections.