Professor Joester’s research group is driven by the desire to understand not only the design, i.e. the structure and functional organization of biominerals, but also their integrated synthesis. On a cellular level, these two, design and its execution, are inextricably linked. Their highly interdisciplinary approach reflects this complexity and rests on both the engineering of biomaterials synthesis in cell culture and the biologically inspired synthetic (re)construction of artificial mineralizing systems. In this way, they hope to find ways to create new materials of functional and architectural sophistication that rival that of biominerals.

Following their recent discovery of a highly soluble Mg-rich intergranular film in vertebrate tooth enamel, they embarked on an investigation into its role in tooth decay and bioinspired approaches to prevent caries. Research in the Joester group therefore includes (bio)synthesis, functional properties, and degradation of biominerals.