Jason Burdick and his Biomaterials and Biofabrication Laboratory design new biomaterials that can be processed through fabrication methodologies to meet the needs of medicine, ranging from translational therapeutics to tissue models. Based in fundamental materials science, the group synthesizes cytocompatible and cell-instructive biomaterials, often from biopolymers (e.g., hyaluronic acid) that are crosslinked into water-swollen hydrogels and biodegradable elastomers. Many of the biomaterials are designed to be shear-thinning and self-healing through the incorporation of dynamic and reversible interactions of polymers or microparticles. Biomaterials from the group are processed with a range of techniques, including electrospinning, microfluidics, and 3D printing (e.g., extrusion printing, stereolithography) to control their structure and subsequent function across applications. The field of biofabrication is growing rapidly and the Burdick Laboratory is designing new materials and processing methods to meet challenges within the field.
Recent applications of work from the group include: (i) injectable hydrogels to treat myocardial tissue after myocardial infarction to limit adverse tissue remodeling; (ii) bioprinting of tissue models (e.g., cardiac) for the screening of therapeutics; (iii) fibrous scaffolds for fibrocartilage tissue repair (e.g., meniscus) and as models of fibrosis; and (iv) hydrogels to improve cartilage repair through therapeutic delivery to the joint or to promote adult stem cell chondrogenesis.听 Common across all of these examples is the innovative design of new materials to meet specific criteria (e.g., degradation, mechanics, cell-interactions) for the intended biomedical application.