Recent innovations in artificial skin.

The skin is a "smart", multifunctional organ that is protective, self-healing and capable of sensing and many forms of artificial skins have been developed with properties and functionalities approximating those of natural skin. Starting from specific commercial products for the treatment of burns, progress in two fields of research has since allowed these remarkable materials to be viable skin replacements for a wide range of dermatological conditions. This review maps out the development of bioengineered skin replacements and synthetic skin substitutes, including electronic skins. The specific behaviors of these skins are highlighted, and the performances of both types of artificial skins are evaluated against this. Moving beyond mere replication, highly advanced artificial skin materials are also identified as potential augmented skins that can be used as flexible electronics for health-care monitoring and other applications.

Tough hydrogel module towards an implantable remote and controlled release device.

On-demand controllable drug delivery systems enable the administration of precise dosages and thus have the potential to improve overall healthcare. In this work, a tough physical hydrogel is developed and studied for triggered burst release. Semicrystalline poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA) is combined with ionic pectin (CaP) to form an interpenetrating network (PVA-CaP). The synergistic combination of crosslinking mechanisms resulted in a threefold improvement in tensile modulus and fracture energy over pristine PVA. As a result of the physical network, crosslink dissociation could be induced by heating. This trait is used as a trigger for burst release of a payload in PVA-CaP flexible substrates. Highly localized and on-demand burst release can be effectively achieved through the inclusion of electronic devices. Cell adhesion and viability tests show that the addition of pectin remarkably improves cell attachment ability and provides a favourable environment for cell proliferation. Implantation tests finally show the suitability of the material for implantation and its ability to conform with natural tissue. Such a system is envisioned for use as an implantable remote and controlled release device.

Using Artificial Skin Devices as Skin Replacements: Insights into Superficial Treatment.

Artificial skin devices are able to mimic the flexibility and sensory perception abilities of the skin. They have thus garnered attention in the biomedical field as potential skin replacements. This Review delves into issues pertaining to these skin-deep devices. It first elaborates on the roles that these devices have to fulfill as skin replacements, and identify strategies that are used to achieve such functionality. Following which, a comparison is done between the current state of these skin-deep devices and that of natural skin. Finally, an outlook on artificial skin devices is presented, which discusses how complementary technologies can create skin enhancements, and what challenges face such devices.

Recent Advances in Shape Memory Soft Materials for Biomedical Applications.

Shape memory polymers (SMPs) are smart and adaptive materials able to recover their shape through an external stimulus. This functionality, combined with the good biocompatibility of polymers, has garnered much interest for biomedical applications. In this review, we discuss the design considerations critical to the successful integration of SMPs for use in vivo. We also highlight recent work on three classes of SMPs: shape memory polymers and blends, shape memory polymer composites, and shape memory hydrogels. These developments open the possibility of incorporating SMPs into device design, which can lead to vast technological improvements in the biomedical field.