Research Meets Application: Biomaterials in Interdisciplinary Dialogue

On 14 and 15 May 2025, the “8^th BioMAT – Symposium on Biomaterials and Related Areas” took place in Weimar. The event brought together experts from science and industry to discuss current developments and challenges in the field of biomedical materials. With a total of 29 lectures, 21 posters, and 9 poster pitch presentations, the symposium offered a broad platform for interdisciplinary exchange—from basic research to clinical applications.

Impulses from leading international research

Four plenary lectures formed the thematic highlights of the conference:

Dr. Carmem S. Pfeifer (OHSU School of Dentistry, Portland, US) presented current challenges for polymer-based dental materials.
Prof. Meital Reches (Hebrew University of Jerusalem, IL) presented concepts for sustainable materials based on peptides.
Prof. Christine Selhuber-Unkel (University of Heidelberg, Germany) spoke about the targeted control of cellular structures using two-photon lithography.
Dr. Emmanuel Stratakis (FORTH, Greece) demonstrated new approaches to laser technology for tissue engineering.

In addition, three highlight lectures provided in-depth insights into special topics:
Prof. Bora Garipcan (TR) addressed cell control through surface topography,
Anna Neus Igual Muñoz (CH) spoke about patient-specific tribocorrosion strategies,
Prof. Julietta V. Rau (IT) presented antimicrobial coatings for biodegradable implants.

Committed Young Scientists

The poster presentations reflected the diversity of the research field. The three winners of the poster award gave particularly impressive presentations:

1st place

Indira Priyadarshani Patra, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, Chennai, IN
“Regulation of Breast Cancer Cell Plasticity via Tunable PEG-Fibrinogen Hydrogel Matrices”

2nd place

Hannah Kissel, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), DE
“Lithium-Ion Release from Hybrid Biomaterials for Enhanced Cartilage Regeneration”

3rd place

Jakub Zlatník, University of Chemistry and Technology, Prague, CZ
“Photothermally Controlled Soft Microactuators for 3D Cellular Mechanostimulation”

Exchange on Equal Terms

In addition to the technical presentations, the symposium offered numerous opportunities for discussion and networking, for example during the poster sessions, the poster evening, and during the breaks. An unexpected fire alarm was humorously used as an opportunity for a group photo and contributed to the collegial atmosphere.

Thanks to the Organizing Team

Thanks for the successful event go to the program committee, in particular the chairpersons Univ.-Prof. Dr. Klaus D. Jandt and Dr.-Ing. Thomas F. Keller. The scientific program was curated together with over 30 international members of the committee and dedicated session chairs.

Contributions Available Online

All presentations and poster contributions will be available to registered participants on the event platform until 29 May 2025. The photo gallery of the event is now also available online.

BioMAT 2025 impressively demonstrated how versatile, application-oriented, and internationally networked research on biomaterials is and how important continuous dialogue between disciplines remains for future developments.