Overview

Many of the biomaterials that are well established in current medical devices came not from dedicated research to develop that material, but from the adaptation of a material used for another purpose. Unfortunately, communication of new materials that have potential in the biomedical field too often relies upon chance meetings between the user or developer of that material and the bioengineer. To address this problem, a special onetime symposium entitled "Carbon in Biomaterials" will be offered. This symposium is important because it will inform the Biomaterials community of the tremendous potential in new carbon-based materials and it will identify the leaders in traditional carbon-materials research fields who can become longterm collaborators for subsequent bio-materials research.
Background for the Symposium

At the heart of every biomedical problem is a materials problem. To improve the performance of medical devices and diagnostic products, the biomedical engineering community has been seeking new and improved materials to replace those currently in service. New developments in carbon-based materials have enabled new materials and applications in the aerospace, automotive, defense, recreation, and semiconductor industries. However, these new materials have not received much attention from the biomedical industry.
Symposium Objectives

This symposium has three objectives:
to provide an educational forum for disseminating new developments in carbon-based materials to biomedical engineers,  
to facilitate new longterm collaboration between traditional carbon materials researchers and biomedical engineers, and  
to motivate undergraduate and graduate biomedical engineering students to learn more about carbon-based biomaterials research, and to consider a career in carbon based biomedical materials research or biomedical product engineering.  
Technical Program

The technical program's organization will be based on fields of academic and potential industrial interest. The meeting will cover a wide spectrum of carbon research and utilization for biomedical applications including:
medical device coatings  
scaffolds for tissue growth  
additives  
materials for fracture resistance  
The symposium begins with a welcome reception on Saturday evening and is followed by three scientific sessions, two on Sunday and one on Monday morning. Three invited speakers are planned for this symposium, one will be Nobel Laureate Sir Harry Kroto, of the University of Sussex. He will provide a broadbased one-hour lecture discussing future trends in carbon materials. A sample of the topics to be addressed in these three sessions include:
use of carbon-based materials for bio-compatible implant device coatings,  
carbon materials for enhanced fracture resistance, and  
carbon-based scaffolds for tissue growth.  

More information on the plenary lectures is included in the First Announcement and the conference web site.

The Carbon in Biomaterials symposium is an integral part of the Carbon 2001 Conference, to be held July 14-19, 2001 at the same location.

Venue

Located in the heart of Kentucky's famous Bluegrass region, Lexington offers fresh possibilities for exploration. Many sightseeing opportunities are available in the area, known for its horse racing and bourbon distilleries. The Hyatt Regency is located downtown, where many restaurants, art galleries, shops and historic houses are within walking distance. Surrounding Lexington are many thoroughbred horse farms available for tours, along with several historic sites. The conference schedule provides enough time for the whole family to explore and enjoy some southern hospitality.

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