MAXheal: Light emitting 3D printed bioactive scaffold embedded in hydrogel for maxillofacial bone healing with limited risk of infection

MAXheal will build a platform of technologies to deliver the first active and personalized implants with built-in anti-infective capabilities using light. The MAXheal goal is to develop novel implants able to promote both osteogenesis and angiogenesis with the option to reduce the risk of rejection using tissue-penetrating infrared light. The MAXheal “smart” implant will be an innovative and groundbreaking NIR rechargeable green persistent luminescent 3D printed scaffold embedded in hydrogel loaded with photoswitchable drugs. This project will lead to: 1) significant progress in the 3D printing of tailor-made biophotonic products for bone reconstruction, 2) the loading of hydrogel with drugs and luminescent particles and in the fabrication of composite implant (glass scaffold, crystals and hydrogel) and 3) an innovative solution to prevent and control bacterial infection using external light stimulus through significant progress in the development of new Nd3+,Tm3+ codoped crystals with enhanced UC and new phosphors with enhanced PeL properties. The safety of MAXheal implant will be assessed in vitro and in vivo, and its efficacy will be demonstrated in the laboratory using animal testing to demonstrate that the MAXheal platform could be generally applied in nanomedicine (from localized tumors to bacterial infections and chronic pain at diverse locations).

Prof. Jonathan Massera, Tampere University