dr inż. Marcin Wekwejt
Employment
- Postdoctoral researcher at CHU-ULaval
- Assistant professor at Institute of Manufacturing and Materials Technology
- Opiekun naukowy at Scientific Club 'Materials in Medicine'
Biography
Marcin Wekwejt holds a bachelor’s degree in Biomedical Engineering (2016; J. and J. Śniadecki Bydgoszcz University of Technology & L. Rydygier Collegium Medicum), a master’s degree in Mechanical-Medical Engineering (2018; Gdańsk University of Technology & Gdańsk Medical University), and a PhD in Materials Engineering (2021; Gdańsk University of Technology). He was awarded the title of Doctor of Engineering and Technical Sciences with distinction for his interdisciplinary doctoral dissertation titled "Modification of Bone Cement for Long-Term Antibacterial Protection." Since 2018, he has been employed at the Department of Biomaterials Technology, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Ship Technology. Currently, he is undertaking a postdoctoral fellowship at CHU de Québec – Université Laval.
His main scientific interests revolve around biofunctional composite materials with effective antibacterial and/or antiosteoporotic properties, as well as innovative bone cements, known as dual-setting bone cements. His most notable achievements to date have focused on the development of bioactive bone cements based on poly(methyl methacrylate), modified with biodegradable components and/or active substances, particularly nanometals and bioactive glasses. His leading research concerns the performance properties (setting and curing time), mechanical properties (compressive and bending strength, hardness), structural properties (SEM, XRD, FTIR), functional properties (degradation time, injectability, and release of active substances), and biological properties (hemo- and cytocompatibility and antibacterial activity) of biomaterials.
He has completed numerous research internships, including at the Turku Clinical Biomaterials Centre in Finland, the Department for Functional Materials in Medicine and Dentistry in Germany, the Centre for Functional and Surface Functionalized Glass in Slovakia, the Department of Laboratory Diagnostics and Microbiology at the Specialist Hospital in Kościerzyna, the Department of Laboratory Medicine at Gdańsk Medical University, and the Institute of Zoology and Biomedical Research at the Jagiellonian University.
He served as the principal investigator for the TECHNETIUM IDUB PG project "Development of a New Magnesium Phosphate-Based Bone Cement Designed as a Degradable Bone Substitute" and as a team member in the ARGENTUM IDUB PG project "Injectable Nanocomposite for Instantaneous Fixation of Titanium Implants in Bone with Effective Antibacterial Properties." He is currently leading the PLUTONIUM IDUB PG project "Development of a New Injectable Ceramic-Polymer Bone Cement," the BEKKER NAWA project "Development of a New Multifunctional Implant System Designed as a Tissue Anchor," and is a team member in the project titled "Design, Development, and Validation of Multifunctional, Biologically Proactive Coatings for Regenerative Medicine Applied to Buccal Health" under the Alliance program with the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada.
He has been awarded the Jan Uphagen Award for Young Scientists from the City of Gdańsk for outstanding scientific achievements in the category of exact and natural sciences (2023), a distinction for the best doctoral dissertation in the field of materials engineering in the publication cycle category by the Polish Materials Science Society (2022), and he was the supervisor of the project that won the StRuNa-SCIENCE competition (2023) and the Golden Lion Cubs PG: Project of the Year (2023). He is also a co-inventor of inventions that received a gold medal (INTARG2024) and two bronze medals (MTE2024). He received awards from the Rector of Gdańsk University of Technology for significant scientific achievements for "Young Researchers" (2020, 2021 and 2024), a team award for scientific achievements from the Rector of Gdańsk Medical University (2022), and individual awards from the Rector of Gdańsk University of Technology for exceptional organizational activities (2020, 2023 and 2024) and teaching activities (2022-2024).
He has served as the supervisor of the interdisciplinary Student Research Group 'Materials in Medicine' (2021-2023), the Chair of the Organizing Committee for the national scientific conference 'IMPLANTS' (2018-2023), and the Chair of the Admissions Committee at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Ship Technology (2021-2023) – currently on hold due to his relocation. Previously, he was also a member of the Senate Committee for Education and the University Committee for Quality Assurance in Education at Gdańsk University of Technology.
List of key scientific publications:
[1] Wekwejt M., Jesiołkiewicz R., Mielewczyk-Gryń A., Kozień D., Ronowska A., Kozłowska J., Gbureck U.: Injectable bone cement based on magnesium potassium phosphate and cross-linked alginate hydrogel designed for minimally invasive orthopedic procedures. Scientific Reports 2024,14:20279.
[2] Wekwejt M., Khamenka M., Ronowska A., Gbureck U.: Dual-Setting Bone Cement Based On Magnesium Phosphate Modified with Glycol Methacrylate Designed for Biomedical Applications. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces 2023,15,48:55533-55544.
[3] Wekwejt M., Chen S., Kaczmarek-Szczepańska B., Nadolska M., Łukowicz K., Pałubicka A., Michno A., Osyczka A.M., Michálek M., Zieliński A.: Nanosilver-loaded PMMA bone cement doped with different bioactive glasses – evaluation of cytocompatibility, antibacterial activity, and mechanical properties. Biomaterials Science 2021;9:3112-3126.
[4] Wekwejt M., Michalska-Sionkowska M., Bartmański M., Nadolska M., Łukowicz K., Pałubicka A., Osyczka A.M., Zieliński A.: Influence of several biodegradable components added to pure and nanosilver-doped PMMA bone cements on its biological and mechanical properties. Materials Science & Engineering C - Materials for Biological Applications 2020;117:111286.
[5] Wekwejt M., Michno A., Truchan K., Pałubicka A., Świeczko-Żurek B., Osyczka A.M., Zieliński A.: Antibacterial Activity and Cytocompatibility of Bone Cement Enriched with Antibiotic, Nanosilver, and Nanocopper for Bone Regeneration. Nanomaterials 2019;9(8):1-18.
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