Biomaterials and Biotechnology

The use of materials for technologies applied to living organisms has in the past been empirical in the highest degree. To find replacements able to perform the functions of defective tissues or organs in the human body, recourse was had to the broad categories of available materials (wood, metals, etc) which were sometimes unable properly to meet the required specifications, either because the implant-tissue interface gave rise to poorly controlled chemical and electrical processes, or — most important — because the requirement of biocompatibilitv was not satisfied.