About Us
Who are we?
The Polymer Chemistry & Biomaterials Group (PBM) at Ghent University is active in the development of polymers for mainly biomedical applications including tissue engineering (a.o. orthopaedic, ocular, adipose, cardiovascular, meniscus, etc.), drug delivery, wound healing, on-chip applications, etc. The main research pillars are focussing on polymer synthesis, functionalization, processing and characterization of the polymers as well as the processed structures. Both synthetic and natural polymers are studied (respectively polyesters, polyethers, etc. versus proteins, polysaccharides, etc.). Specific expertise includes the functionalization of polymers with (photo-)crosslinkable moieties. In addition to (core-shell) electrospinning, a plethora of 3D-printing equipment is available which includes laser-based 3D-printing (stereolithography, digital light projection) and extrusion-based 3D-printing (filaments, polymer pellets and hydrogel solutions – in combination with cell encapsulation for the latter). In addition to polymer development capabilities and facilities, the research group has also been focussing heavily on the surface modification of existing and novel materials.
The Polymer Chemistry and Biomaterials group has done an extensive research on (bio)polymers and their application in the biomedical field. The more than 100 publications prove our competence in the biomedical field.
The keystone of PBM Groups’ success is its versatile and professional team. The group is led by Prof. Peter Dubruel and Prof. Sandra Van Vlierberghe and employs 1 lab coordinator, 4 post doctoral researchers and 21 PhD students with multidisciplinary backgrounds.
