Hydrophobicity as a design criterion for polymer scaffolds in bone tissue engineering.

Porous polymeric scaffolds play a key role in most tissue-engineering strategies. A series of non-degrading porous scaffolds was prepared, based on bulk-copolymerisation of 1-vinyl-2-pyrrolidinone (NVP) and n-butyl methacrylate (BMA), followed by a particulate-leaching step to generate porosity. Biocompatibility of these scaffolds was evaluated in vitro and in vivo.

Gas plasma treatment: a new approach to surgery?

In this survey we analyse the status quo of gas plasma applications in medical sciences. Plasma is a partly ionized gas, which contains free charge carriers (electrons and ions), active radicals, and excited molecules. So-called nonthermal plasmas are particularly interesting, because they operate at relatively low temperatures and do not inflict thermal damage to nearby objects.