Polymer Science and Polymer Chemistry

Biomaterials and Biopolymers

A biomaterial is any substance that has been engineered to interact with biological systems for a medical purpose - either a therapeutic (treat, augment, repair or replace a tissue function of the body) or a diagnostic one. They may be of natural origin or synthesized in a laboratory. Advanced polymeric biomaterials proceed to serve as a cornerstone of new scientific applied sciences and therapies. The good sized majority of these materials, each natural and synthetic, interact with biological depend besides direct digital communication. However, biological systems have evolved to synthesize and employ naturally-derived materials for the technology and modulation of electrical potentials, voltage gradients, and ion flows. Bioelectric phenomena can be interpreted as strong signaling cues for intra- and inter-cellular communication. These cues can serve as a gateway to link artificial units with biological systems. Specific focal point will be granted to the use of natural and synthetic biological substances as necessary aspects in applied sciences such as thin film electronics, in vitro cell culture models, and implantable medical devices. Future views and emerging challenges will also be highlighted. Biomedical applications, polymers with good biological compatibility (such as Teflon) are also considered as biomaterials, and though, strictly, they are not biopolymers, they will be treated as biomaterials in this chapter. In this way we are led to consider the electret properties of artificial polymers such as Teflon and polysulfonate films which are of importance for biological or medical applications