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IBEC and PCB in Exhibition on Materials Innovation

By 22 de February de 2008November 18th, 2020No Comments
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 22.02.2008

IBEC and PCB in Exhibition on Materials Innovation

The Nanotechnology Platform and the Catalonia Institute for Bioengineering (IBEC), both of them housed at the Barcelona Science Park (PCB), are taking part in an exhibition entitled "Mater in Progress. New Materials, New Industry". The exhibition brings together the most representative examples of innovation and new technologies applied to materials, which have been developed by educational centres, research groups and companies in Spain. Aimed at the general public, the show is sponsored by Foment de les Arts i del Disseny (FAD), a non-profit organisation promoting design, in association with the Spanish Ministry of Industry, Tourism and Trade. The show will remain on display until 28 April and admission is free of charge.

The show, which can be seen in the FAD Exhibition Room (Plaça dels Àngels 5-6), offers a look at over one hundred projects. Its ultimate aim is to create a permanent centre for advice and the exchange of information, so that research and the latest advances in the field can be made available to all professionals working in the field. Projects on display were selected by a committee of experts, which included IBEC head Josep A Planell.

The PCB is represented in the show by a project jointly undertaken by the Nanotechnology Platform and IBEC, entitled “Connecting the Materials of Life through Nanotechnology”. The project gives visitors a chance to see artificially made nanometric materials that mimic the physical and chemical properties of their cellular environment, making them useful in biomedical applications. In particular, you can see biocompatible polymers that serve to support cell cultures and tissue engineering. The polymers are able to stimulate the activity of cells in surrounding tissue, and that is of value in the field of regenerative medicine (to reconstruct damaged tissue and organs) and in improving disease diagnostic systems as well.

In addition, IBEC has collaborated in the preparation of the book “Mater in Progress”, edited by FAD. The book offers details of the 365 projects considered for the show. It also gives information on the research projects and innovations currently underway in the area in a wide range of sectors.

Another group represented in the show is the Biomaterials, Biomechanics and Tissue Engineering Research Group at the Technical University of Catalonia, which is associated with IBEC. The group’s contribution, a project entitled “Biomimetic Dental Implants Using Calcium Phosphate”, presents implants coated with calcium phosphate. Having properties like a bone, the material speeds bone growth and enables implants to set more rapidly.