There is a growing need for advanced tools that enable frequent monitoring of biomarkers for precision medicine. In this work, we present a composite hydrogel-based system providing real-time optical bioanalyte monitoring. The responsive material, alginate-in-alginate (AnA), is comprised of an alginate hydrogel with embedded bioactive, nanofilm-coated phosphorescent microdomains; palladium tetr...

Engineering materials using supramolecular principles enables generalizable and modular platforms that have tunable chemical, mechanical, and biological properties. Applying this bottom-up, molecular engineering-based approach to therapeutic design affords unmatched control of emergent properties and functionalities. In preparing responsive materials for biomedical applications, the dynamic cha...

Smart materials are highly desirable over the recent decade due to growing demand on complicated nature. with stable stimuli-responsive properties widely applied in sensors, smart windows, displays, and chemical valves, but they relatively rare. Most of current chromic triggered by one or two external stimuli, only a few multi-stimuli responsive instances still suffer their restricting function...

Stimuli responsive, smart interface materials are integrated with microfluidic technologies creating new functions for a broad range of biological and clinical applications by controlling the material and cell interactions. Local capture and on-demand local release of cells are demonstrated with spatial and temporal control in a microfluidic system.

A novel pressure sensor has been developed by taking advantage of the orientational dependence of localized surface plasmon resonance of gold nanorods embedded in a polymer matrix. This stress-responsive material can be used to record the distribution and magnitude of pressure between two contacting surfaces by outputting optical response.

Poly-gamma-glutamate (PGA) is a chiral polyamide material that possesses a nylon-like backbone, a bionylon polymer. We examined the PGA productivity of Bacillus megaterium and found NaCl-responsive PGA production in the bacterium. In the system of B. megaterium, salt would be significant in controlling the yield, molecular size, and stereochemistry of bionylon.

We present a one-photon visible light-responsive micellar system for efficient, on-demand delivery of small molecules. Release is mediated by a novel class of photochromic material - donor-acceptor Stenhouse adducts (DASAs). We demonstrate controlled delivery of small molecules such as the chemotherapeutic agent (paclitaxel) to human breast cancer cells triggered by micellar switching with low ...

A multi-stimuli responsive small molecule organic material has been developed, which for the first time exhibits dual-wavelength response to render photocoloration under visible light and turn-on luminescence under UV light. The colored product can be bleached and shows turn-on luminescence again when re-exposed to UV light.

Molecular self-assembly permits the spontaneous aggregation of a variety of low molecular weight amino acid subunits into highly ordered aggregates. Functionalisation of water soluble poly(allylamine) with acetyl protected dialanine enables the formation of a biopolymer self-supporting material (SSM). The presence of an enzyme cleavable dipeptide linker renders the SSM responsive to disruption ...