Biomaterials at Work: How Are Engineered Materials Shaping Modern Medicine?

By Owais AliReviewed by Frances BriggsAug 20 2025

From cancer therapy to pacemakers, engineered biomaterials are reshaping medicine. Smart, biocompatible materials that heal, monitor, and even dissolve are moving from lab promise to clinical reality. 

Image Credit: Zoran Zeremski/Shutterstock.com

Biomaterials are natural, synthetic, or hybrid substances engineered to interact with biological systems for medical purposes. They are used in devices, implants, and tissue-engineering applications to replace or enhance the function of damaged or impaired tissues and organs.¹

Different Classes of Biomaterials

Researchers classify biomaterials in several ways: by their origin, how they interact with tissue, and their intrinsic material properties. 

Natural biomaterials, such as collagen, chitosan, and bone, have been used for centuries but are now engineered into biomimetic scaffolds that support tissue repair.

Synthetic biomaterials, including polymers and ceramics, are designed for scalability and precision. Recent advances have produced synthetic collagen and mucus-inspired gels. Hybrid materials combine both: silk-polyurethane blends for vascular grafts or collagen-hydroxyapatite composites for bone repair.

Equally important is how biomaterials interact with tissue. Bio-inert metals such as titanium tend to remain passive, while bioactive ceramics like hydroxyapatite chemically bond with bone to promote integration.

Classification by material type (metals for strength, polymers for flexibility, ceramics for durability, and composites for tailored performance) guides how each is applied in medicine.^1,2

Biocompatibility and Biodegradability of Biomaterials

Safe materials are critical in medicine. A material must be biocompatible to be clinically useful, meaning it must be able to exist in the body without provoking immune rejection or toxicity. Biomaterials used in the body must also be biodegradable, breaking down into harmless products to maintain safety and efficacy in therapeutic and implantable applications.

Titanium, for instance, exhibits excellent biocompatibility and is widely used for permanent implants, although it is not biodegradable. In contrast, polylactic acid (PLA) offers both biocompatibility and biodegradability, making it suitable for temporary scaffolds and sutures.

Careful assessment of these properties ensures that the selected biomaterial meets the specific requirements of the medical application and patient needs.³

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Applications of Biomaterials in Medicine

The use of biomaterials stretches across disciplines. In cancer therapy, for example, nanostructured carriers such as chitosan nanoparticles deliver drugs directly to tumors, while smart micelles combine chemotherapy with immune activation to target resistant cancers. 

In bone and cartilage repair, hydrogels and bio-piezoelectric scaffolds provide controlled microenvironments for cell growth. They deliver therapeutic agents or growth factors in a regulated manner, responding to internal or external stimuli. 

Bioactive peptides, such as Transforming Growth Factor-β1, can be added to enhance chondrogenesis and osteogenesis, reconstruct complex tissue architecture, and improve structural and functional recovery.

In wound healing, chitosan and alginate polymers can be used, releasing molecules that promote angiogenesis and tissue closure. 

Scaffolds composed of biocompatible polymers, both synthetic (PLGA, PCL) and natural (collagen, hyaluronic acid), support cell proliferation, adhesion, and differentiation. These responsive scaffolds create controlled microenvironments that promote effective functional recovery in injured cardiac and muscular tissues.

Tissue repair can be even further enhanced with nanoparticles and bioactive molecules. Upconverting with these materials, as well as growth factors like VEGF and BMP-2, further enhances tissue repair.^1,2,3,4

Recent Research and Development

Noise-Reducing Nanocomposite Biomaterials for Pacemakers

An unexpected complication with pacemakers prompted a biomaterial solution. After implanting the devices in patients, some reported increased headaches, puzzling clinicians. Thought to be a result of electrical noise and interference from electromagnetic sources that disturb signal stability, researchers have developed a nanocomposite biomaterial to put a stop to the issue. 

Published in AIP Advances, scientists designed the nanocomposite biomaterials to enhance the performance of brain and heart pacemakers by reducing electrical noise and improving signal transmission. The composites were based on polypropylene combined with Montmorillonite clay and varying ratios of graphene.

Graphene’s role is critical. Its exceptional electrical properties allow it to channel useful signals while suppressing random interference, and when dispersed within the polymer matrix, it enhances mechanical strength without compromising flexibility. The clay, meanwhile, improves thermal stability and prevents the composite from degrading under repeated electrical stress.⁵

Acellular “Living” Nanocomposite for Regenerative Medicine

In a study published in Materials Horizons, researchers have developed acellular “living” nanocomposite hydrogels (LivGels) that mimic the mechanical and biological behavior of extracellular matrices (ECMs). These living gels address previous limitations in regenerative medicine and disease modeling.

Using cellulose-based nanoparticles, or “nLinkers,” that dynamically bond with a modified alginate matrix, these nanocomposites provide anisotropic strain-stiffening and self-healing properties that restore structural integrity after mechanical stress.

Rheological testing confirmed rapid recovery and tunable stiffness, closely matching natural ECMs, while the fully biological composition avoids biocompatibility issues associated with synthetic polymers. These findings demonstrate their potential for use in medicine.⁶

Piezoelectric Biomaterials for Implantable Biosensors

Implantable devices show great promise in health monitoring and delivering medical therapy from within the body. However, once they have been used, they begin to cause problems. Conventional implants have to be surgically removed, while existing bioresorbable materials struggle with strength and stability.

Piezoelectric biomaterials may be able to solve this issue. In a recent study, researchers developed high-performance β-glycine nanocrystalline films that show unusually strong and stable piezoelectric properties. Using the electrohydrodynamic spray deposition method with nanoconfinement and in-situ electric field alignment, they produced dense films with uniformly high piezoelectric strength and improved thermal stability.

Being biocompatible and biodegradable, this new film avoids the problems in current devices. Such "disappearing" tech opens possibilities for short-term medical interventions, without the long-term burden of a permanent implant.⁷

Novel Biomaterial Fabrication Techniques

Fabrication technologies are also pushing biomaterials into new territories. 3D bioprinting, for example, has significantly enhanced biomaterials for protein delivery. New methods enable precise control over scaffold size and shape, allowing the creation of structures that closely mimic the extracellular matrix and support tissue regeneration.

This is evident in a recent study published in Nature Communications, which demonstrated 3D printing of decellularized extracellular matrix (dECM) bioinks from cartilage, adipose, and heart tissues. The researchers produced scaffolds suitable for in vitro disease modeling, drug screening, and tissue engineering applications.

Electrospinning is another fabrication technique that generates ultrafine polymer fibers forming non-woven mats with high surface area-to-volume ratios, ideal for protein encapsulation and controlled release, with tunable kinetics achieved by adjusting fiber composition, alignment, and degradation rate. Together, these methods bring precision and scalability to tissue-scaffolding, making even the most intricate designs clinically viable.⁸

Challenges and Future Outlooks

Biomaterials have revolutionized medicine by enabling targeted therapies, tissue regeneration, and implantable devices. However, there are still limitations in biocompatibility and in scaling production. Ongoing advances in fabrication technologies, smart materials, and nanocomposites will expand on recent findings, driving the practical application of biomaterial innovations in healthcare.

References and Further Reading

1. Tzyy, E., Ng, J. W., & Lee, P.-C. (2022). Classification and Medical Applications of Biomaterials–A Mini Review. BIO Integration, 4(2). https://doi.org/10.15212/bioi-2022-0009
2. Mahdi, N. M. S., Hassan, A. K., Al-Hasani, F. J., & Al-Jawher, W. A. M. (2024). Classification Of Biomaterials and Their Applications. Journal Port Science Research, 7(3), 281-299. https://doi.org/10.36371/port.2024.3.7
3. Bharadwaj, A. (2021). An Overview on Biomaterials and Its Applications in Medical Science. IOP Conference Series Materials Science and Engineering, 1116(1), 012178–012178. https://doi.org/10.1088/1757-899x/1116/1/012178
4. ‌Ajmal, S., Athar Hashmi, F., & Imran, I. (2021). Recent progress in development and applications of biomaterials. Materials Today: Proceedings, 62, 385-391. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matpr.2022.04.233
5. Mezher AL-Kasar, B. C., Asl, S. K., Asgharzadeh, H., & Peighambardoust, S. J. (2024). Enhancing soundproofing performance of polypropylene nanocomposites for implantable electrodes inside the body through graphene and nanoclay; thermomechanical analysis. AIP Advances, 14(12). https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0209738
6. Roya Koshani, Kheirabadi, S., & Amir Sheikhi. (2024). Nano-Enabled Dynamically Responsive Living Acellular Hydrogels. Materials Horizons, 12(1), 103–118. https://doi.org/10.1039/d4mh00922c
7. Zhang, Z., Li, X., Peng, Z., Yan, X., Liu, S., Hong, Y., Shan, Y., Xu, X., Jin, L., Liu, B., Zhang, X., Chai, Y., Zhang, S., Jen, A. K., & Yang, Z. (2023). Active self-assembly of piezoelectric biomolecular films via synergistic nanoconfinement and in-situ poling. Nature Communications, 14(1), 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-39692-y
8. Gorantla, A., Hall, J. T., Troidle, A., & Janjic, J. M. (2024). Biomaterials for Protein Delivery: Opportunities and Challenges to Clinical Translation. Micromachines, 15(4), 533. https://doi.org/10.3390/mi15040533

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