Novel Thin Film Biomaterials for Tissue Engineering

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Deposition of thin films and etching via the use of “cold” (thermodynamically non-equilibrium) low-pressure (LP) plasmas achieved prominence in information technology since the 1960s. Those two processes and a third, surface modification of polymers, are now also being used in many other industries. Recently, there has been much progress in implementing atmospheric-pressure (AP) cold plasmas, mostly the dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) variety, for those three process categories. Beside direct use of LP and AP plasmas, it is also possible to carry out such processes by vacuum-ultraviolet (VUV, lambda = 200 nm) photo-chemistry, since commercial (plasma-based) VUV sources can efficiently convert electrical energy into short-wavelength photons. A potential advantage of (mono-energetic) photo- chemistry over (LP- and AP-) plasma is that the former may result in more targeted reactions, with higher yields of the desired products. Research in the applicant’s laboratory of all types (LP, AP, VUV) above has over the years resulted in well over 400 refereed publications, in two dozen patents, and in much technology transfer to industry. He proposes innovative research focused on novel AP plasma techniques and on thin organic films deposited on suitable substrates for use in bio-technological (e.g. tissue engineering) applications. Such coatings must be rich in certain types of chemical functionalities, for example in primary amines (-NH2), carboxylic (COOR), hydroxyl (-OH), or thiol (-SH) groups, they must adhere strongly to various substrate materials, must resist “aging” in atmosphere and dissolution in aqueous (cell-culture) media, among other criteria. Finally, of course, they must first and foremost elicit the desired bio-response from the cell-type(s) being cultured. This latter aspect calls for close collaboration with specialists in the cell-biological and medical sciences that are being addressed in any given sub-project. During the past decade, the applicant’s laboratory has developed networks of collaborations, mostly with senior researchers in the medical faculty of McGill and Montreal universities. In the recent past NSERC specifically included “Plasma Applications” among areas of Interdisciplinary Materials Research that possess particularly high potential for socioeconomic impact; Plasma Medicine (PM) clearly can benefit healthcare for Canadians, as it already has in Europe.