Challenge Area: Materials for Bioelectronics in Healthcare

Royce has now published the Materials for Bioelectronics in Healthcare Strategy and Action Plan, a comprehensive report that aims to help future-proof the UK’s bioelectronics for healthcare sector through materials innovation.

The Strategy presents findings from a development process completed between February and July 2024 and features key insights from over 60 stakeholders active in materials for bioelectronics research, commercialisation and clinical use.

As the first of its kind, the Strategy contains new data on the activity of bioelectronics for healthcare in the UK, materials in use, and recommended action plans to secure the future of the sector, primarily a new virtual centre for materials innovation for bioelectronics in healthcare.

Highlights from the report include a detailed roadmap outlining the materials properties required by bioelectronics applications from now to 2040, which contributed to identifying three Grand Challenges that will form a focal point for researchers and innovators moving forward.

The Strategy also sets out a series of action plans, providing prioritised recommendations for stakeholders with influence over materials innovation for bioelectronics in healthcare, including Royce, universities and researchers, industry, the investment community, clinicians and healthcare bodies, policy and regulation bodies, funding bodies, and RTOs including Catapults.

Materials for bioelectronics are important to the function of electronic systems that directly interface with biological systems for the purposes of prevention, monitoring, diagnosis, and treatment of disease.

The earlier phase one Mid Term Report was a building block in the establishment of a broader Materials for Health Challenge Area. Challenge Areas represent a targeted initiative designed to stimulate and drive UK materials research towards clear outcomes that meet both national and global needs.

Materials will play a key role in supplying safe and responsible healthcare solutions in the future. Royce wants to support materials translation to provide these materials for health and ensure that the UK can capture a share of this emerging global market.

Materials for Bioelectronics is the first focus area and the aim of this process and output is to provide clarity on the current state of research and associated translation, most importantly, where there are gaps, barriers or disruptive opportunities which remain overlooked.

The final Strategy and Action Plan delivers actionable pathways to building a materials innovation ecosystem that meets the demands of the growing bioelectronics sector in the UK and globally.

Bioelectronics is a hugely exciting area that builds on the fields of electrical engineering and material science. The field of bioelectronics has captured public attention with some exciting new devices reaching the clinic, such as deep brain stimulation as a treatment for motor dysfunction resulting from Parkinson’s disease, cluster migraine, depression and obesity.

Bioelectronics is also an enabling technology for remote out-patient care. Brain computer interfaces (BCI) are a promising access technology for people with physical disabilities who have limited control over their bodies. BCIs allow you to control an application or a device, via a computer, using only your mind.

Bioelectronics to date have relied heavily on traditional electronic materials, or materials developed for other purposes. However, there is a clear need for new, bespoke materials to be developed specifically for bioelectronic applications, given the challenges of operating in biological environments, potentially in bodies, for long periods of time.

There is strong interest by UK industry in bioelectronics and particular interest from medical device manufacturers. However, as our research shows, the challenge is that there is currently a large gap between existing materials and the next phase of advanced materials. Closing that gap will either require the enhancement of existing materials and associated regulatory approval or the demonstration of the functionality of new materials with associated regulatory approval.

The UK has pockets of activities on bioelectronics, however a major step up in investment is required to attract the best talent and to increase industrial involvement