| Project summary
The overall Science and Technology objectives of this project are to create a knowledge base and a
technical platform that can be exploited in the design and development of nanobiotechnological
processes and devices, tailored to steer/monitor cellular function. The project team consists of 7 leading
groups in Europe, representing the necessary interdisciplinary competence and the complementarity
required for this purpose. The project includes all levels from materials design and preparation,
nanostructuring, chemical patterning, and biomolecular interactions up to the cellular level.
There are a number of obstacles which currently prevent a knowledge base and a technical platform
from being realised. Some relate to the lack of suitable fabrication methods e.g. to produce
nanopatterned non-fouling surfaces with functional arrays of macromolecules, some relate to a lack of
suitable characterisation tools e.g. tools to characterize the interface between living cells and synthetic
materials, others relate to a lack of understanding of molecular interactions at surfaces and of
mechanisms of cellular interactions at biointerfaces. The scientific and technical work plan addresses
critical issues of the different types (fabrication, characterisation and understanding of molecular and
cellular interactions. The main deliverables from this project will be i) new fabrication tools for
nano-scale patterned surfaces, ii) new characterisation tools, and iii) knowledge generated of the
interaction of biological systems components with nano-scale patterns and structures. This outcome
will provide a platform for the design and implementation for directing cellular function via surface
nano-scale molecular cues.
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