Engineering the bio-interface for the next generation of biomedical devices

生物界面是物质与生物学相遇的地方。生物界面科学旨在理解和控制生物实体在表面上的行为。调节这种行为的最可靠的方法之一是通过控制界面（生物）化学和物理性质，这种方法下文称为生物界面工程。生物医学研究为生物界面工程提供了强大的动力；如果对生物医学设备的表面进行设计，使其能够与复杂的生物流体（如血液）更积极地相互作用，那么许多生物医学设备的性能将得到极大的改善，最终提高我们的生活质量，降低医疗保健相关成本，并挽救生命。生物医学设备表面工程的现状是使它们无毒（错误地命名为“生物相容性”），在某些情况下是被动的（即盲目排斥所有生物分子）。然而，一个真正的生物相容性表面是一个可以在期望的应用地点与复杂的生物景观有益共存的表面，积极地突出积极的相互作用，减少不希望的相互作用。我的研究项目侧重于设计和开发具有多模态功能的工程生物接口，强调它们与生物医学设备的集成。具体来说，我建议解决设计有效生物界面的主要挑战之一，即在保留和增强界面所需的生物功能的同时，最大限度地减少非特异性相互作用。提出的实现这一目标的方法是设计生物功能的全憎界面。该研究的新颖之处在于将生物功能（即与目标生物分子的特异性相互作用）与基于润滑剂的全疏（超疏水和光滑）表面相结合，这些表面已被证明在避免非特异性附着和随之而来的一连串并发症（最显著的是血栓的形成）方面非常有效。提出的研究目标将分三步实现：(i)一项基础的综合研究，旨在开发生产生物功能全憎表面的工艺，并研究它们的功能和与生物物种的相互作用，然后利用已开发的知识进行设计；（ii）在不需要抗凝血剂的情况下从血液中清除生物靶点的体外装置；（iii）帮助术后愈合的机械心脏瓣膜。该研究项目是建立一个领先的世界级研究平台的第一步，该平台专注于发展对控制生物界面相互作用现象的基本理解，目的是将这些知识转化为具有现实影响的应用，以应对人类健康方面的全球挑战。

The biointerface is where material meets biology. Biointerface science aims to understand and control the behaviour of biological entities on surfaces. One of the most sure-fire ways to modulate this behaviour is by controlling the interfacial (bio)chemical and physical properties, an approach hereafter referred to as engineering the biointerface. Biomedical research provides a strong motivation for engineering the biointerface; the performance of many biomedical devices could be vastly improved if their surfaces were engineered to allow for a more active interaction with complex biological fluids such as blood, ultimately improving our quality of life, decreasing healthcare-associated costs, and saving lives. The status quo in surface engineering of biomedical devices is to render them non-toxic (erroneously named “biocompatible”) and, in some cases, passive (i.e., blindly repellent of all biomolecules). A truly biocompatible surface, however, is a surface that can beneficially co-exist with the complex biological landscape at the desired site of application, actively highlighting positive interactions and diminishing undesired interactions.My research program focuses on the design and development of engineered biointerfaces with multimodal functionality, emphasizing on their integration into biomedical devices. Specifically, I propose to tackle one of the main challenges in designing effective biointerfaces, namely minimizing non-specific interactions while retaining and enhancing the desired bio-functionality of the interface. The proposed approach for realizing this objective is to design bio-functional omniphobic interfaces. The novelty of the proposed research lies in integrating bio-functionality, i.e., specific interaction with target biomolecules, with lubricant-based, omniphobic (super hydrophobic and slippery) surfaces that have proven highly effective at avoiding non-specific attachment and the cascade of complications that follow, the most notable being formation of blood clots.The proposed research objective will be realized in three steps: (i) a fundamental comprehensive study aimed at developing the processes for producing bio-functional omniphobic surfaces and investigating their function and interaction with bio-species, followed by utilizing the developed knowledge for designing: (ii) extracorporeal devices for cleansing biological targets from blood without the need for anticoagulants, and (iii) mechanical heart valves that aid post-operation healing. This research program is envisioned as the first step towards establishing a leading world-class research platform focused on developing a fundamental understanding of the phenomena that govern the interactions at the biointerface, with the aim of translating this knowledge to applications with real-life impact addressing global challenges in human health.