Technology

Enzymes, cells, organs, and other biomaterials have excellent functions, but their instability limits the environments, applications, and timeframes in which they can be used.

Professor Madoka Takai, Graduate School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo, has long studied zwitterionic polymers, which are biocompatible materials. The protective layer of water formed on the substrate surface by coating the substrate with this hydrophilic zwitterionic polymer inhibits adsorption of cell and protein to the surface of the substrate, thus stabilizing the bio-implantable device or artificial organ for a long time.