MRS Press Release

The journal publishes first Prospectives Article  

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 2 2012, United States of America

MRS Communications, a ground-breaking new journal for the global materials research community, has published its first Prospectives Article—Biomaterials-based strategies for the engineering of mechanically active soft tissues. Written by Zhixiang Tong and Xinqiao Jia, both of the University of Delaware’s Biotechnology Institute, the article examines the potential for breakthroughs in the creation of artificial tissues that are mechanically robust and biologically functional.

This forward-looking article is the first offering of a unique feature of MRS Communications, its Prospectives Articles. These succinct topical reviews of interest to a broad materials research readership will be authoritative and balanced, featuring new, speculative or controversial areas of research for future consideration.??

In this seminal Prospective, Zhixiang and Xinqiao observe that although the field of tissue engineering has witnessed great progress over the past few decades, only a few engineered products (skin, tracheal cartilage, bone and bladders) have had clinical success. The fabrication of mechanically active tissues such as the heart, blood vessels and vocal chords remains elusive.

The authors “summarize recent endeavors in design and development of synthetic biomaterials with robust mechanical properties, complex structural organizations, and defining biological features that are essential for the successful engineering of mechanically active tissues. The advantages and disadvantages of each type of material and approach are discussed.” They conclude, “We expect that advancements in biomaterials development will greatly contribute to the realization of the promise of tissue engineering in the not too distant future.”??

Editor-in-Chief of MRS Communications, Peter F. Green said the paper is exceptionally worthy and exciting. "We are pleased to introduce the first in a series of Prospectives Articles. This inaugural Prospective describes new developments in engineered soft tissues, possessing an ability to function biologically under complex, non-linear mechanical deformations. It should be of interest to materials scientists as it falls under the theme of structure-function-synthesis/processing of materials."??

MRS Communications launched in 2011, offering a full-color, high-impact journal focused on groundbreaking work across the broad spectrum of materials research. Published jointly by the Materials Research Society (MRS) and Cambridge University Press, MRS Communicationsoffers a rapid but rigorous peer-review process and time to publication. A nimble production schedule brings articles to online publication and a global audience within 14 days of acceptance.

Hosted on the cutting-edge Cambridge Journals Online (CJO) platform, the journal features a comprehensive suite of author and reader services, as well as an immediate reader/subscriber base including almost 16,000 MRS members and over 2,500 academic, industrial and government libraries worldwide. ? 

ENDS 

Notes to Editors 

For further information, please contact Hannah Gregory on +44(0)1223 325544, email[email protected], or Anita Miller on 724.779.2754, email [email protected].  

More on MRS Communications
For more information about the journal visit www.mrs.org/mrc or email [email protected]  

Major article types for MRS Communications include:

• Research Letters
• Ultra-Rapid Communications
• Prospectives Articles
• Editorials
• Commentaries
• Correspondence

Manuscripts are solicited in the following topical areas, although submissions that succinctly describe groundbreaking work across the broad field of materials research are encouraged:

• Biomaterials and biomimetic materials
• Carbon-based materials 
• Complex oxides and their interfaces 
• Materials for energy storage, conversion and environmental remediation 
• Materials for nanophotonics and plasmonic devices 
• Theory and simulation of materials 
• Mechanical behavior at the nanoscale 
• Nanocrystal growth, structures and properties, including nanowires and nanotubes 
• Nanoscale semiconductors for new electronic and photonic applications 
• New materials synthesis, templating and assembly methods 
• New topics in metals, alloys and transformations 
• Novel and in-situ characterization methods 
• Novel catalysts and sensor materials 
• Organic and hybrid functional materials 
• Quantum matter 
• Surface, interface and length-scale effects on materials properties

For manuscript submission instructions, please visit www.mrs.org/mrc-instructions.  

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Peter F. Green, University of Michigan, USA 

FOUNDING PRINCIPAL EDITORS Luca Dal Negro, Boston University, USA  
Horacio Espinosa, Northwestern University, USA  
Supratik Guha, IBM Research, USA 
Dan Hancu, GE Global Research, USA  
Kristi Kiick, University of Delaware, USA  
Nicola Marzari, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Switzerland  
Paul McIntyre, Stanford University, USA 
Albert Salleo, Stanford University, USA  
Alec Talin, National Institute of Standards and Technology, USA  
Nagarajan (Nagy) Valanoor, University of New South Wales, Australia 

About Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press is the publishing business of the University of Cambridge. Dedicated to excellence, its purpose is to further the University's objective of advancing knowledge, education, learning, and research. Its extensive peer-reviewed publishing lists comprise 36,000 titles covering academic research, professional development, nearly 300 research journals, school-level education, English language teaching and bible publishing. 

For further information, please go to: www.cambridge.org.