Advanced Materials and Technologies in Ophthalmology

Dear Colleagues,

Approximately 285 million individuals worldwide suffer from visual impairment and 39 million from blindness, as reported by WHO in 2010. Such loss of vision caused by many eye diseases is irreversible with currently available medical and surgical therapeutic modalities. With rapid developments in tissue engineering technologies, researchers have devoted increasing efforts to the regeneration of lost or damaged eye tissues as a new approach to treating visual impairment and blindness caused by various ocular degenerative diseases, trauma, or infection. The development of natural and synthetic biomaterials for ophthalmic applications has attracted increasing attention. Recently, advanced materials and technologies, e.g., hydrogels, biodegradable polymers, nano-technology, and additive manufacturing technology, have been adapted to tissue engineering to mimic the physico-chemical properties of ocular tissues, deliver and control the release of bioactive molecules, control the cellular micro-environment, and build three-dimensional (3D) structures with various microenvironments and cell types.

This Special Issue will host papers (communications, articles, and reviews) related to the latest findings and trends in the field of ophthalmological biomaterials. Topics may include, but are not limited to, the following: advanced materials and technologies (such as hydrogels, biodegradable polymer, nano-technology, corneal tissue engineering, 3D bioprinting) in the fields of contact lens, artificial cornea, intraocular lens, artificial retina, and bionic eyes, etc. We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Prof. Dr. Li Ren
Prof. Dr. Weiyun Shi
Guest Editors

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