A team at Nottingham is building a 3D screening system to test thousands of biomaterial variations at once—moving beyond the flat, two-dimensional surfaces that currently dominate materials discovery. This matters because today’s approved biomaterials—the polymers used in drug delivery, regenerative medicine, and medical devices—come from a narrow, generic set. The body’s response to a material depends not only on its chemistry but also on its stiffness, surface texture, and three-dimensional shape. Existing 2D screening methods miss these architectural cues, so potentially superior materials never get found. The project aims to produce large libraries of patterned surfaces, particles, and complex 3D structures, then test them systematically for specific applications. If successful, the work could replace one-size-fits-all polymers with bespoke materials tailored to particular tasks: targeted drug carriers that release their payload only where needed, scaffolds that guide tissue regeneration more effectively, or next-generation medical device coatings that resist infection. The team plans to push the most promising leads toward clinical use through partnerships, licensing, or spin-out companies. The core activity, however, is fundamental—building the discovery platform itself, which could reshape how biomaterials are identified for decades.
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Advanced biomaterials are essential components in targeting infectious diseases and cancers, realising the potential of regenerative medicine and the medical devices of the future. A multidisciplinary team spanning Engineering, Science and Medical Faculties in Nottingham, in collaboration with 4 leading international groups has combined to realise the vision of materials discovery in 3D. Without this leap beyond 2D screening methodologies we will miss new advanced materials because they omit architecture and often poorly represent the in vivo environment. The aim is to allow us to move beyond the existing limited range of generic bioresorbable polymeric drug and cell delivery agents currently licensed for use in man and medical device polymers, to bespoke materials identified to function optimally for specific applications. We know that defining chemistry, stiffness, topography and shape can control the response of cells to materials. This programme will focus on producing and testing large libraries of these attributes in the form of patterned surfaces, particles and more complex architectures. New materials will be identified for application in the areas of targeted drug delivery, regenerative medicine and advanced materials for next generation medical devices. The 3D screening methods will define a new landscape in biomaterials discovery and create the platforms through which more effective advanced materials will be discovered. Our three ambitious application focussed areas provide high impact examples in which our biomaterials leads are developed towards exploitation in the clinic. These downstream projects will be carried out in both academic and commercial research programmes funded through partnering, licensing and formation of spin-outs as appropriate.
Amir Ghaemmaghami (Co-Investigator)Anna Maria Grabowska (Co-Investigator)Cameron Alexander (Co-Investigator)Cathy Merry (Co-Investigator)Chris Denning (Co-Investigator)Christopher Tuck (Co-Investigator)Derek Irvine (Co-Investigator)Dong-Hyun Kim (Co-Investigator)Felicity Rose (Co-Investigator)Jing Yang (Co-Investigator)Josephine Bunch (Co-Investigator)Kevin Shakesheff (Co-Investigator)Martyn Davies (Co-Investigator)Morgan Alexander (Principal Investigator)Paul Williams (Co-Investigator)Philip Williams (Co-Investigator)Richard Hague (Co-Investigator)Ricky Wildman (Co-Investigator)SM Howdle (Co-Investigator)
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