Fields of Impact
The DWI – Leibniz Institute for Interactive Materials develops materials with dynamic properties and active functions, following the example of living materials in nature. In order to realize this mission, research at DWI is organized in such a way as to promote the convergence of different scientific disciplines. Scientists from currently five Competences Areas join forces within interdisciplinary research projects that are associated to DWI’s three Fields of Impact, each of them addressing central societal needs: Biomedical Materials, Sustainable Materials, and Information Materials.
The field of biomedical materials is developing rapidly: modern technologies and the increasing pooling of knowledge from different scientific fields make it more and more feasible to develop novel, high-performance biomedical materials. Biomedical materials are used to replace or repair diseased or injured tissue. These include, for example, implants such as artificial joints or heart valves, wound dressings and plasters, artificial tissue or blood vessels for the regeneration of damaged tissue. Models such as synthetic cell tissue from various body parts and organs, as well as complex cell models, are also of immense importance for research into diseases and the development of new therapies. In addition, progressive approaches enable the development of new active substances and delivery mechanisms.
At the DWI, scientists combine their expertise from the fields of chemistry, engineering and biotechnology to develop various biomedical materials. They are often inspired by nature and have feedback mechanisms with their environment. Moreover, the material properties can be varied over time and as required by external stimuli such as ultrasound in order to adapt them to the needs of biological systems or the therapeutic effect.
The DWI focuses on the production of ex vivo tissue models for the investigation of diseases, regenerative in vivo medicine, biofunctional coatings of medical devices, the spatially and temporally controlled activation of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and theranostics triggered by external stimuli. Other important objectives include the improvement of local drug therapy (alternative and new drug delivery systems) or the application of bioactive substances. These are to be improved to minimize the risk of damage to healthy tissue and undesirable side effects for patients.
A lighthouse project in this field at the DWI is the TriggerINK project funded by the Werner Siemens Foundation. Its long-term goal is to imprint biomedical materials directly into a cartilage defect in vivo in order to create functional and structured cartilage tissue in the body.