Biomimetic and Smart Polymeric Surfaces for Biomedical and Biotechnological Applications

Surfaces and biointerfaces are recurrent when materials are used in bio-related applications. Bio-inspired concepts have been implemented in this field and gained increasing interest. In this context, stimuli-responsive surfaces have found applicability in a variety of subjects, including switchable surfaces to control protein immobilization or cell adhesion, porous membranes for controlled drug delivery applications, substrates and scaffolds for tissue engineering applications, biosensors, or membranes for bioseparation. Moreover, self-assembly strategies and hierarchical structures often found in Nature could inspire scientist and engineers to propose new solutions in the design and fabrication of surfaces with special features, such as wettability within extreme ranges, improved adhesion, optical and mechanical properties and specific bioactivity. In this work some aspects related to the use of stimuli-responsive and biomimetic surfaces in the field of biomedicine and biotechnology are highlighted and some examples are presented.