Chris Arts is Professor of Translational Biomaterials at the research group for Orthopaedic Biomechanics at Eindhoven University and at Maastricht University Medical Centre, where he co-heads the Laboratory for Experimental Orthopaedics. He is also the project leader and principal investigator of the NWA DARTBAC consortium, where he collaborates with 26 partners to develop material technology to combat antimicrobial resistance and support infection treatment and prevention. Let’s dive into the world of a scientific muli-tasker with a practical approach who prefers not to waste time.
You’re balancing three jobs across two universities. What does your daily schedule look like?
“I don’t require much sleep, which is helpful. I can get a lot done between 10 PM and 2 AM. My days vary a lot. I spend one-third of my time teaching, and the remainder of my time is filled with supervision of research projects and students, visiting partners in my network, and occasionally writing grants. I compare myself to a living nomad —I work in Eindhoven, Chemelot Campus, and Maastricht UMC+. The day-today variety, even though it involves a lot of traveling, is what I like very much.”
What are the main clinical challenges you’re currently working on?
“I’m focused on three areas: large bone defects, infection prevention and treatment, and spinal deformities like scoliosis. Large bone defects, for instance, don’t heal spontaneously in about 10% of fractures, and that’s both a biological and mechanical problem. You need specialized biomaterials to bridge the gap and promote bone healing and angiogenesis (new blood vessel formation).”
What are the specific challenges in dealing with large bone defects?
“When someone fractures a bone, particularly in an accident —like an elderly person on an e-bike vs. a car— the under-leg might develop a defect of 3 to 4 cm. Traditional methods don’t work well to heal such defects. You need materials that not only support the load but also allow the bone and blood vessels to regenerate biology over time. It’s tricky because both the material and the bone matrix need to evolve together.”
What properties should a material have to both support bone healing and encourage angiogenesis?
“It depends on who you ask, but since you’re asking me, I’d say mechanical strength is crucial. However, porosity is also key —both macro and micro porosity. This allows us to control molecular processes around the implant, but these things take time.”
Are you working on any materials that could soon be available for patients?
“Actually, yes. We are working on two first-in-human trials. One will involve 3D-printed cages for spinal fusion surgery. In previous BMM and Insicte projects we also developed polyethylene cables for scoliosis treatment in young children. Although they might still need some tweaks, they’re being investigated in clinical trial, however first in adults and when results are good and complications are absent we can opt for children as well. I prefer projects that can be translated into patient care within ten years. If it takes longer, I lose interest, because then it takes too long to help patients.” In the end helping patients is the ultimate goal of my research.”
Are these trials purely academic, or are you collaborating with industry?
“We work closely with industry. For example, we’ve collaborated with DSM and other large medical device companies on antimicrobial coatings. You can’t scale up these technologies without industry support. Academia alone can’t manage the full scale of development and production.”
What advice would you give researchers looking to collaborate with industry?
“You need to define timelines clearly because academic and industry priorities don’t always align. You also have to observe from both an academic and business perspective. I spent a few years with Stryker, a medical device manufacturer, which gave me insights into how companies operate. It helps when writing grants to think about what’s in it for them.”
You mentioned the DARTBAC project earlier. Could you explain what it’s about?
“DARTBAC is a National Science Agenda (NWA) project focused on antimicrobial resistance, which is one of the biggest medical challenges we face. Antibiotics aren’t cutting it anymore and the development pipelines are frightingly empty. We have patients who face either amputation or death due to infections resistant to all available treatments. With DARTBAC, we aim to minimize the effects of these infections through innovative material technologies that are not based on antibiotics like implant surface modification with 3D printing, peptide therapies, and antimicrobial coatings to name a few.” Furthermore, we aim to raise AMR awareness in the society and also work on new diagnostic technologies.
There are 26 partners involved in DARTBAC. How do you manage such a large consortium?
“I spend one day a week visiting partners, and I make sure to see each of them at least twice a year. It’s a lot of effort, but you get more out of it when you invest in those relationships. We’ve got partners across the Netherlands, Finland, Norway, Germany, and the U.S. It takes time, but the results are worth it.”
Are the health funds or patient groups involved as well?
“Yes, we’re working with organizations like Reumafonds and the Dutch Orthopedic Association. It’s helpful to involve patient groups in projects now that there’s more focus on research impact and pathways for change.”
How do you plan to tackle antimicrobial resistance through DARTBAC?
“In short, we can’t entirely solve it, but we can minimize its impact in the Netherlands. Bacteria form biofilms, which protect them from antibiotics and immune responses. Our approach focuses on preventing these biofilms from forming, using technologies like coatings and 3D printing. When bactwria cannot attach to an implant and do not form a biofilm, the immune system can deal with free-floating bacteria more effectively.”
Do you foresee any of these technologies being available in clinics by the end of the DARTBAC project?
“Yes, some of the antimicrobial coatings will be in patients as early as this year. Peptide therapies will likely follow within 18 months. We’re also making progress with induction heating technology and with bacteriophages, that can kill bacteria from the inside. The challenge is timing—bacteria can mutate quickly, but if we inject phages at the right time, they’re very effective.”
You’re also working on biomaterials in DARTBAC. Are you collaborating with SBMC?
“Not in DARTBAC, but in another Interreg project Prosperos-II , yes. It’s tricky for universities to work at a cleanroom level. You need not just the facilities but also the right expertise and attitude and behavior. It’s essential if you want to conduct high-level research in such controlled environments. In my opinion to succeed, multidisciplinary collaboration is essential.
