New Else Kröner Professorship in Electronic Tissue Technologies combines materials research and electronics with medicine

Professor Minev is regarded as one of the leading researchers in the field of bioelectronic implant systems and previously worked at the University of Sheffield in the UK. His approaches are characterised by an interdisciplinary perspective that combines materials research and electronics with medicine and biology.

New options through bioelectronic implants

Technologies for the electronic recording and control of bodily functions have become indispensable in medical technology. At the same time, they are the subject of intensive research that utilises radically new concepts, such as the regeneration of the injured nervous system. The aim of my research is to develop materials that are electrically conductive and biologically active so that they can interact with cells and surrounding tissue and transmit information. These materials will be used in implantable devices to enable continuous monitoring and targeted treatment of diseases. I want to merge electronic and biological systems to better treat neurological diseases such as Parkinson's or epilepsy," explains Professor Ivan Minev.

Patient-centred research for the medical technology of tomorrow

Interdisciplinary collaboration and patient-centred research are at the heart of research activities at the EKFZ for Digital Health. The new joint professorship for Electronic Tissue Technologies, jointly funded by the Else Kröner-Fresenius Foundation and the IPF, will create the conditions for making decisive advances in the medicine of the future with patient-centred systems. Professor Minev has the expertise and experience to intensify the collaboration between engineers, material scientists and physicians. His research profile will make a significant contribution to creating new treatment and therapy options for a wide range of diseases. The new professorship will strengthen and further develop the focus on digital health at the Carl Gustav Carus Medical Faculty of the Technical University of Dresden, as well as the system-oriented translational research of the Leibniz Institute of Polymer Research Dresden.

Additional information

Biography: Prof Ivan R. Minev will occupy the newly created Else Kröner Professorship for Electronic Tissue Technologies at the Leibniz Institute of Polymer Research Dresden and the Else Kröner Fresenius Centre for Digital Health from June 2023. Since the end of 2019, Ivan Minev has held the professorship for Intelligent Healthcare Technologies at the University of Sheffield in the Department of Automatic Control and Systems Engineering (ACSE). Prior to this, he was a research group leader at the Biotechnology Centre BIOTEC at the Technical University of Dresden from 2016 to 2019. From 2012 to 2016, he worked as a postdoc at the Centre for Neuroprosthetics at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL), where he focused on the development of soft implants for the nervous system.

EKFZ für Digitale Gesundheit: The Else Kröner Fresenius Centre for Digital Health at TU Dresden was founded in September 2019. It is funded by the Else Kröner-Fresenius Foundation with a total of 40 million euros for a period of ten years. The centre focuses its research activities on innovative, medical and digital technologies at the direct interface to patients. The aim is to promote a new generation of doctors with comprehensive technical knowledge and skills and, conversely, to equip engineers with a comprehensive understanding of the needs of doctors and patients.

Leibniz-Institut für Polymerforschung Dresden: The IPF researches new polymer-based materials for applications in the fields of resources, health and information. Ivan Minev has been working with scientists from the institute since his first research period in Dresden; during his time in Sheffield he became an IPF Fellow*. The establishment of the new joint professorship and the associated creation of a new IPF research area will further expand the Institute's activities on bioelectronic materials for innovative interfaces between electronics and living matter.

* IPF Fellows are leading scientists at universities or renowned research institutes in Germany and abroad who are associated with the institute through collaborative activities.

Else Kröner-Fresenius-Stiftung (EKFS) – Forschung fördern. Helping people: The non-profit Else Kröner-Fresenius-Stiftung is dedicated to promoting medical research and supporting medical-humanitarian projects. To date, it has supported around 2,200 projects. With an annual funding volume of currently over 60 million euros, it is the largest medical funding foundation in Germany.

Article from "idw - Informationsdienst Wissenschaft" from 5 June 2023