Biomaterials for MEMS

References 167

in product designation. The successful completion of design, development, and

testing stages mentioned above set the tone for the remainder of the process.

Table 7.5 summarizes some important aspects of biocompatibility and biofunction-

ality within the pre-FDA submission process which should be addressed.

7.6 CONCLUDING REMARKS

MEMS technological advances rooted within the semiconductor industry have

opened the road to the development of BioMEMS for drug delivery applications

which target critical clinical needs such as diabetes, vascular disease, and cancer.

Indeed, the desire of developing a treatment solution which would restore the life

of patients suffering of diabetes or vascular disease, as well as those battling cancer,

has motivated engineers, biologists, and physicians to put forth a concerted effort

through advancing purely industrial technologies to clinical viability.

The development of many materials intended for clinical applications has

found its origin in the industrial field, materials created without a biological

application in mind. As these materials enter the realm of intended clinical

application, selected for their flexibility of processing, mechanical properties or

mechano-active/electro-chemical aspect, the questions of impact on the host re-

sponse (biocompatibility) and of in situ functionality (biofunctionality) become

central.

The emergence of the bionanotechnology, at which level fundamental biology

is defined, advances the micro-scale to a nano-level. The nano-world relates to that

of the extracellular matrix and its components, which defines the realm of tissue

engineering and advances the concept of tissue regeneration. The natural progres-

sion from BioMEMS to BioNEMS (Bio-Nano-ElectroMechanical Systems) is taking

place today. The bionanotechnology brings together multiple approaches, materi-

als, and systems all directed towards the understanding, control, and construction

of molecular structures exhibiting new useful properties and functions. It is the

hope of the interdisciplinary scientific community that bionanotechnology will

integrate these properties and functions within the local biological environment

leading the effort towards advanced regenerative therapies.

References

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Staples M., Daniel K., Cima M. J., and Langer R., Application of micro- and nano-

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Sbiaa Z., MEMS fabricated chip for an implantable drug delivery device. Conf. Proc.

IEEE Eng. Med. Biol. Soc. 1, 5621–4.

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Tao S. L., and Desai T. A., Micromachined devices: The impact of controlled geometry

from cell-targeting to bioavailability. J. Cont rol R elease, 109, 127–38 (2005).

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Santini J. T., Jr, Richards A. C., Scheidt R. A., Cima M. J., and Langer R. S., Microchip

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