The replacement of a joint with an endoprosthesis is one of the standard operations in orthopedic surgery. Various measures, such as the improvement of the biomaterials and also the surgical techniques in recent years make this operation extremely successful and have led to an improvement clinical results. Nevertheless, the results show that not all patients are very satisfied yet. This is mostly due to the failure of the endoprosthesis. The reasons for endoprosthesis failure include aseptic prosthesis loosening, inflammatory reactions, infections, implantation errors.

The forms of metallic wear can be in particulate form, but also as organometallic complexes, salts and also ions. This metallic wear can then lead to bone loss around the prosthesis triggered by the inflammatory response of the joints. This cellular triggered cascade involves the interplay of various cytokines that have an inhibitory effect on new bone formation, but in particular a proinflammatory effect and activation effect on bone resorption.

The aim of the laboratory is to investigate and understand the influence of the different abrasion materials on the joint cells (osteoblasts, osteoclasts, fibroblasts and immune cells). In particular, new materials are first tested in the laboratory for their biocompatibility in vitro and in vivo.