Jochen Salber studied physics, chemistry and medicine at RWTH Aachen University from 1991 to 2006. After his intermediate diploma in physics and chemistry, he continued his studies in chemistry with a focus on transition metal catalyzed, enantioselective, organic synthesis. He carried out his diploma thesis in 1995 at the Institute of Biochemistry of the Medical Faculty of RWTH Aachen University and in the peptide department of the German Wool Research Institute (DWI) at RWTH Aachen University under the guidance of Univ.-Prof. Dr. Axel Wollmer and Univ.-Prof. Dr. Hartwig Höcker. The topic of his diploma thesis was "Investigation of allosteric transitions in insulin analogues using circular dichroism spectroscopy". He started his scientific doctoral thesis at the DWI under the guidance of Univ.-Prof. Dr. Hartwig Höcker within the framework of funding by the German Federation of Industrial Research Associations (AiF) and in cooperation with various industrial partners. The topic of his doctoral thesis was "A critical analysis of the Chlorine/Hercosett™ felt-free finish as a basis for an alternative chlorine-free process" and was awarded several national and international prizes. Afterwards, Dr. rer. nat. Jochen Salber worked first as a postdoc and later as deputy group leader in the biomaterials group of Prof. Dr. Doris Klee. There he was involved in the acquisition of research project funds, project management, guidance of junior scientists and the performance of biocompatibility studies on novel surface modifications for implants or invasive medical devices. He established a S1 laboratory at what is now the DWI - Leibniz Institute for Interactive Materials. His other research interests included the development of novel biodegradable polymers. In collaboration with engineers from the Institute of Plastics Processing (IKV) and the Institute of Textile Technology (ITA) at RWTH Aachen University, he worked on methods for technical processing and development of novel medical devices made of durable or biodegradable as well as bioresorbable plastics. In further collaborations with researchers from the Interdisciplinary Center for Clinical Research (IZKF, Medical Faculty of RWTH Aachen University) and the Helmholtz Institute for Biomedical Engineering, he investigated the interaction between human cells and biomaterials. In 2006, Dr. Salber completed his medical studies at the Medical Faculty of RWTH Aachen University and received his license to practice medicine in 2008. Also in 2008, he moved from Aachen to Bochum and started his clinical training as a specialist in trauma surgery and orthopedics at the University Hospital Bergmannsheil Bochum under the supervision of Univ.-Prof. Dr. Gert Muhr. After several stations and clinical training periods in intensive care medicine, emergency medicine, cardiothoracic surgery (Univ.-Prof. Dr. Justus Strauch), pediatric trauma surgery/orthopedics (Dr. Levent Özokyay) and neurosurgery, Dr. Salber moved to the University Hospital Knappschaftskrankenhaus Bochum in 2014. There, he worked in the Department of Trauma Surgery and Orthopedics (Prof. Dr. Rüdiger Smektala) and in the University Department of Visceral, Vascular and Transplant Surgery under the guidance of Univ. Prof. Dr. Richard Viebahn. At the same time, Dr. Salber established his own research group for Medical Biomaterials at the Center for Clinical Research (ZKF) at Ruhr University Bochum. In 2018, Dr. Salber passed the specialist examination for trauma surgery and orthopedics before the Westphalia-Lippe Medical Association. In addition to the certified specialist qualification for trauma surgery and orthopedics, Dr. Salber is a Full Instructor of the European Resuscitation Council (ERC) for the European Trauma Course (ETC), for training future shock room leaders in polytrauma care. In 2018, Univ.-Prof. Dr. R. Viebahn and Dr. Salber decided to rename the Medical Biomaterials Working Group to the Department of Experimental Surgery. In 2019, Dr. Salber was appointed Com. Senior Physician and Head of the Department of Experimental Surgery. The department is supported by funds from the Department of Surgery, rooms and KOFFER funds from the Faculty of Medicine of the RUB and is mainly financed by the so far successful acquisition of external funding via EU projects. In addition to clinical teaching activities since 2009, OA Dr. Salber teaches chemistry to medical students in the annual pre-course and since 2021 he participates with his own lecture on "Molecular regulation of cell/tissue biomaterial interaction" in the research focus Molecular Medicine of the RUB. Clinical research interests are in the area of foreign body (e.g. endoprosthesis) associated infections, polytrauma immunology and anastomotic insufficiencies. Further translational research focuses on tissue engineering, biofabrication, additive manufacturing, SLA technology, organ-on-chip development and biocompatibility analyses.