Concepedia

Biomimetic lubrication

Soft Matter · 2011 · 138 citations · 109 references

TL;DR

Synovial joint lubrication is highly efficient, enabling smooth motion between soft cartilage surfaces for nearly a century, but failure causes pain and reduced quality of life, and the complex ultrastructure of cartilage and the diverse, interacting molecules involved are crucial to this process. This review focuses on the lubricating molecules, both biolubricants and biomimetic ones that share some features of the biolubricants. The review outlines the conditions required for low friction in aqueous media, focusing on load‑bearing capacity and self‑healing ability. It concludes that these conditions—adequate load‑bearing capacity and self‑healing ability—are essential for effective lubrication.

Abstract

The lubrication of synovial joints is extremely efficient, allowing smooth motion to be performed between relatively soft and vulnerable cartilage surfaces for close to 100 years. A failure of this system leads to significant pain and loss of life quality. The ultrastructure of cartilage is complex and of functional significance. The molecules that are involved in the lubrication process are of many types, and they associate with each other in a complex fashion. This review focuses on the lubricating molecules, both biolubricants and biomimetic ones that share some features of the biolubricants. It discusses the conditions that must be fulfilled for achieving low friction in aqueous media and emphasizes the importance of load bearing capacity and self-healing ability.