Anti-biofouling mechanisms and devices for health applications

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The long-term goal of the proposed program is to continue Microelectromechanical Systems (MEMS) research in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at UBC. As part of the long-term vision, 5-year specific research themes are: (1) MEMS-based anti-biofouling devices One of the obstacles in implantable biomedical devices is "biofouling". The immune reaction begins by forming a thin protein layer on the device surface immediately after implantation. From the support of Discovery grant, we have demonstrated miniature piezoelectric actuators can reduce protein adsorption, the first step to prevent formation of a biofouling layer. We plan to integrate a piezoelectric device with a glucose sensor and test in vitro. (2) Application of anti-biofouling mechanisms to vascular devices Long-term vascular stents and stent grafts are commonly used to treat vascular diseases. Short and long-term stent fouling, or thrombosis presents a high risk. Protein adsorption and thrombus tissue growth on the stent is a major failure mechanism. Learning from our previous research, we hypothesize that controlled low-level vibration using magnetic micropillar arrays (MMPAs) structures with a vascular stent may promote endothelial cells to grow on the stent and reduce thrombosis tissue formation. We will develop a MMPAs and test its interaction with endothelial cells. (3) Application of anti-biofouling devices in stem cell research Differentiation of cardiomyocytes (contractile muscle cells) from iPS cells (induced pluripotent stem cells) has not been achieved in culture, even with all the stem cell reprogramming tools that are in place today. We are proposing to use the MEMS anti-biofouling devices developed in this program to apply low level cyclic strain to reprogram iPS cells into cardiomyocytes.