DWI – Leibniz Institute for Interactive Materials

Remote‐Controlled Genetic Circuits: Light, Ultrasound, and Magnetic Fields for Programmable Gene Regulation

Remote-controlled genetic circuits use externally applied physical signals to regulate gene expression and cellular functions with spatial and temporal precision. Light, ultrasound, and magnetic fields provide complementary advantages in controllability, tissue accessibility, and...

Engineering Gold Nanoconstruct Architecture Dictates Absorption Efficiency and Photoacoustic Imaging Performance

Abstract Photoacoustic (PA) imaging combines the high contrast of optical modalities with the deep-tissue penetration and high-spatial resolution of ultrasound, making it an attractive technique for biomedical imaging. Gold nanoconstructs are among the most widely investigated PA...

Cell-derived lactate triggers local hydrogelation and phenotype remodelling

Abstract Many tumours release lactate as a major metabolic product and signalling molecule. Here we use lactate flux as an endogenous trigger for covalent hydrogel formation. Phenol-functionalised alginate remains soluble until cell-derived lactate is oxidised by lactate oxidase;...

Microgels Enable iPSCs to Assemble, Expand, and Differentiate Into Organoids—From Sizable to High‐Throughput

Organoid research holds tremendous potential for personalized medicine and drug development. However, current limitations include reproducibility issues largely due to the use of biologically derived materials, which are prone to batch-to-batch variations. Here, we report a chemi...

Solvent-Free Mechanochemical Synthesis of Highly Charged Microgels

Abstract Recently, ball milling has emerged as a versatile tool for solvent-free polymer transformations. Here, a mechanochemical strategy is presented for the synthesis of stimuli-responsive microgels under solvent-free conditions. The approach relies on mechanically induced cha...

Host Response Impairs Tissue Integration of a Fibrin Hydrogel Scaffold Containing Poly(ε-caprolactone) Nanofibers for Peripheral Nerve Repair

The development of bioengineered conduits for the repair of large peripheral nerve defects remains challenging. Here, we introduce a biomimetic fibrin hydrogel scaffold containing stacked arrays of aligned poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) nanofibers that mimics the naturally forming fi...

Unravelling the Atomic‐Scale Surface Chemistry for Intrinsically Bright and Stable Luminescence in CdSe Quantum Platelets

Two-dimensional colloidal CdSe quantum platelets (QPLs) represent a promising class of next-generation luminescent materials, yet the atomic-level surface chemistry that governs their optoelectronic properties remains poorly understood. In this study, we combine ligand passivatio...

Cononsolvency‐Assisted Fabrication of Hydrogels and Microgels With Tunable Porosity, Diffusivity and Stiffness

ABSTRACT Porous materials including hydrogels offer high potential for applications requiring controlled mass transport, cell infiltration, and mechanical properties, such as tissue engineering, drug delivery, or soft robotics. We report a facile method for the synthesis of hydro...

Toward Material‐Specific Peptides From in Silico Guided Peptide Engineering to Target PET in the Presence of PS

ABSTRACT Synthetic polymers are indispensable but pose major recycling challenges, particularly in mixed plastic waste streams. Enzymatic recycling offers a promising route to specific polymer depolymerization into oligomers and monomers. This requires controlling molecular recog...