Biomaterials are materials that serve to support the tissues and the organs of the human body in executing their functions, that can replace them or fully take over their function. These materials do not have to be of biological origin; they can be metals, ceramics, natural or synthetic polymers, or their composites. Metals like titanium and cobalt-chrome alloys; ceramics like alumina and hydroxyapatite and some carbon-based materials can be given as examples of biomaterials. Of these, carbon nanotubes are being used to modify surface properties of other biomaterials and products by increasing their conductivity and strength, thus enabling them to be used in the construction of tissues such as cardiac muscle and nervous system.
Four dimensional materials, the shape-memory materials, can change their form and dimension in response to the stimuli they are exposed to and this has led the way for many new areas, including cell sheet engineering. Natural and synthetic origined hydrogels, medical grade 3D printed filaments and graphenes have contributed to the biomaterials field in a variety of ways. Especially pure carbon structures have played an important role in the production of surfaces that prevent cell adhesion. The developments in biomaterials field have progressed to the point where applications such as treating damaged tissues of a patient on the operating table by directly 3D printing onto the damage site is becoming a possibility, something which only a few years ago was considered science fiction.
Tissue modeling is the development and use of a tissue engineered product as a substitute for a guinea pig. Microfluidic technology allows the study of interactions, along with the screening of drugs in a much quicker way with minimal amount of liquid sample. Micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) have also started to contribute to this area. Thanks to this technology, it is possible to create nano and micro-sized designs on materials and to transfer them onto other materials. Sometimes physical and chemical decorations or elements of material surfaces can induce chemical and biological responses. If an implant can be decorated by similar signal elements, processes such as interactions with the tissue and recovery rates would be seriously affected. In the following years these approaches will make substantial contributions to the field of medicine.