Bionic Healing

Cursed with an infinite ability to heal, he was subjected to experimental surgery to plate his entire skeleton with adamantium, creating an indestructible assassin. So goes the story of comic book superhero Wolverine, but there is some science to be found in this fiction. The body's ability to heal is vital to the successful integration of titanium implants, from hip replacements to pacemakers. Treating these implants with an alkali significantly improves tissue healing. But how? Incubating alkali-treated or untreated titanium with human blood and fibroblast tissue cells (brown) unravels part of the puzzle. Scanning electron microscopy of these cells shows that they work together on the treated metal surface to create thicker blood clots (pictured) and release more factors that encourage blood vessel growth – key processes in tissue healing. With this model for mimicking the body's reaction to metal implants, other potential biomaterials can be more accurately tested.

Written by Lux Fatimathas

Lux Fatimathas

Writer

Having pursued science through a career in research, communications and publishing, she is currently a writer and editor for a healthcare marketing agency and also juggles freelance science writing.

• Image from work by Melanie A Burkhardt and colleagues
• Department of Health Sciences and Technology, Laboratory of Applied Mechanobiology, ETH Zurich, Switzerland
• Image originally published under a Creative Commons Licence (BY 4.0)
• Published in Scientific Reports, February 2016