Concept of Biomaterials

Since ancient times, ceramics and metals have contributed to human life and have been used in prosthetic dentistry. In the 20th century, polymer materials dramatically changed our life style and advanced the field of preventive dentistry. Now, dentists use a range of ceramics, metals and polymers by considering their individual properties. Especially, biomaterials that are biologically compatible with the human body are the focus of attention. Many different kinds of hard and soft tissue biomaterials are used in dentistry. However, most of these materials are not metabolized. Therefore, biodegradable biomaterials are expected for use in the repair of bone defects and periodontal diseases. Recently, scaffold biomaterials such as CO3apatite-collagen composites have been studied eagerly for use in tissue engineering. Since the end of 20th century, regeneration medicine has received considerable attention. Cooperation between biomaterial studies and tissue engineering research is very important. Furthermore, embryology is a key factor for the future of biomaterials. In the engineering field, investigations into fabrication and processing have been on going for a longtime. However, in the near future, bio-processing techniques will be developed. Thus, the concept of biomaterials is changing over time. In this symposium, experts in ceramics, metals and polymers will discuss the future trends of biomaterials in their respective fields