How to Make a Material That Mimics Cartilage

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Researchers have been trying to work out how it might be possible to replace cartilage. Cartilage has to withstand and dissipate the huge forces placed on it every time we take a hop, a skip or a jump. But making a material that mimics cartilage is easier said than done. You can make a material that's incredibly stiff, for example, but it won't be very tough. It would likely be brittle, which wouldn't make for a good cartilage substitute. In the body, cartilage in the joints manages to be both stiff and tough due to a tangled network of proteins and other molecules That help dissipate forces and give the tissue its shape.

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10:10 Engineering synthetic cartilage

The cartilage in our joints is able to withstand and dissipate a lifetime of impacts, protecting our bones and muscles from damage. But the mechanical properties of cartilage have made it difficult to mimic, and developing synthetic cartilage to replace damaged tissue has proved challenging. Now a team has developed a protein-based material that shares some of cartilage’s characteristics, and shown its potential in helping heal damaged tissue.

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