First APRICOT PhD students on board
Since start of the action on 1st October 2019, the APRICOT team has been complemented by two PhD students who have been actively contributing to the project’s progress by their dedicated research activities.
Maria Bauer, who is a mechanical engineer with a degree from TUM, joined APRICOT beginning of November 2019. She works at the associate professorship of biomechanics of TUM, which is led by Prof Lieleg and mainly focuses on biopolymers and bio-interfaces research. Here, she concentrates on developing the coating and selecting the most suitable lubricant for the APRICOT® implant. TUM is also supporting UTWENTE in defining an appropriate fixating system, thus establishing a tight link with Pardis Farjam, who acquired a degree in mechanical engineering at Shiraz University and a master’s degree in Biomedical Engineering at the Polytechnic of Milan. She also joined APRICOT end of 2019 and works with Prof Bart Verkerke at the department of Biomechanical Engineering at UTWENTE. Pardis’s work focuses on developing a novel, minimal invasive fixation for the APRICOT® implant, which means she will be contributing to the design of the anchoring system, evaluating the biological interaction of the APRICOT® implant, developing an implantation strategy and designing specialized surgical instruments.