Introduction to bioinspired functional supramolecular systems

João Borges

João Borges is a Senior Researcher at the Department of Chemistry and CICECO – Aveiro Institute of Materials at the University of Aveiro, Portugal. He obtained his PhD in chemistry from the University of Porto. His research focuses on the molecular design, synthesis and development of supramolecular multicomponent biomaterials to be used as bioinstructive matrices to control cell functions and as platforms for controlled drug/therapeutics/protein/cell delivery. He is an Editorial Advisory Board Member of the Journal of Materials Chemistry B (JMCB) and is the recipient of several honors and awards, including elected Chemistry Europe Fellow (Class of 2022/2023), Fellow of the Young Academy of Europe, Global Young Academy and Young Academy of Portugal, and JMCB Emerging Investigator 2023.

Patricia Y. W. Dankers

Patricia Y. W. Dankers is a full professor in biomedical materials and chemistry at the Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e). She studied chemistry in Nijmegen. Her PhD studies in chemistry were performed at TU/e (2006). Her second PhD thesis was performed in medical sciences in Groningen (2013). She worked at Northwestern University, USA (2010). She received Veni, Vidi, Vici (2008, 2017, 2023) and ERC Starting (2012) and PoC (2017) grants. She has been awarded the KNCV Gold Medal (2020) and the Ammodo Award for fundamental research (2021). Recently, she was elected to the Royal Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW; 2025). She is a co-founder of the spin-off companies UPyTher (2020) and VivArt-X (2022); and the start-up company Helmond Biotech-materials Hub (2023). She is the CEO of SyMO-Chem (2025).

João F. Mano

João F. Mano is a full professor in the Chemistry Department of the University of Aveiro, where he directs the COMPASS Research Group, from CICECO – Aveiro Institute of Materials. He combines advanced biomaterials and cells towards multidisciplinary concepts in the field of regenerative and personalized medicine. Specifically, he utilizes biomimetic and nano/micro-technology approaches to develop polymer-based biomaterials for the creation of biomedical devices with enhanced structural and multi-functional properties. He has received different honours, including two honoris causa doctorates (University of Lorraine and Utrecht University), the George Winter Award 2020 from the ESB and he was elected fellow FEurASc, FBSE and FAIMBE.

Sébastien Lecommandoux

Sébastien Lecommandoux is a full professor at Bordeaux INP and Director of the LCPO (UMR CNRS, University of Bordeaux), where he is leading the group “Polymers Self-Assembly and Life Sciences”. His research interests include the design of bio-inspired polymers for biomaterials and pharmaceutical development, especially based on polypeptides, proteins and polysaccharide-based block copolymers self-assembly, the design of polymersomes for drug-delivery, as well as biomimetic approaches toward the design of synthetic viruses and artificial cells. He is Editor-in-Chief of Biomacromolecules (ACS) and co-founder of the company Doxanano. He has received several honours, including Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry, French Academy of Science Chemistry Award, XingDa Lectureship Award. He is a member of the Academia Europaea and currently holds the Chaire Innovation of the Collège de France.

Biological systems, including molecular motor proteins, cell membranes, cell compartments, the DNA double-helix structure, or the native extracellular matrices (ECM) of tissues and organs, constitute some truly fascinating examples of highly complex and dynamic landscapes formed by non-covalent interactions. Such natural systems work as a source of inspiration to develop bioinspired materials and systems that could be used to recreate the structural composition, hierarchical nature, dynamic functional behavior and properties of living systems. Ultimately, they are very appealing for their use in a wide array of biomedical scenarios.

Research activities in supramolecular systems span from fundamental studies in the molecular design, synthesis, development and characterization of functional supramolecular materials and systems to the self-assembly of bioinspired supramolecular assemblies, with enhanced properties and multifunctionalities across multiple length scales, for drug/gene delivery, (bio)sensing, antimicrobial (bio)materials, or cell culture platforms.

In particular, an in-depth understanding of the mechanisms, (supra)molecular structure and properties, underlying the self-assembly of supramolecular gelators – encompassing small molecules, such as synthetic peptides and supramolecular motifs – into transient hydrogel-like fibrous networks have been in the limelight for the last two decades. More recently, we have witnessed significant efforts on the development of self-assembled nanofibrous systems involving peptides and (recombinant) proteins. Supramolecular systems have been developed as the result of the co-assembly of some of the aforementioned building blocks, or even processed into diverse size- and geometry-tunable materials by resorting to nano- and micro-fabrication technologies. The purification and preparation protocols, and physicochemical, morphological and biological properties of several bioinspired supramolecular self-assemblies are discussed in detail, providing invaluable insights into the structure–property relationship of several (bio)materials and their potential application in a wide array of biomedical scenarios.

The development of dynamic, adaptive and responsive supramolecular (bio)materials and systems is one particular area in which exciting developments have been accomplished, aiming to better recreate the complexity, dynamic functional behavior and mechanical properties of native ECM. While the biochemical complexity imparted by natural-based polymeric systems is advantageous, the enhanced mechanical properties and the chemical reproducibility assigned to synthetic molecules, turn hybrid supramolecular systems into the materials of choice when aiming to recreate biological systems. As such, the development of bioactive and tunable multicomponent functional materials, formed through the dynamic, non-covalent self-assembly of distinct small synthetic molecules and larger natural macromolecules, is a burgeoning area which aims to merge chemistry and biology via synthetic (supramolecular) materials and natural components, respectively. Ultimately, such hybrid materials and systems will harness new properties and multifunctionalities which are expected to drive exciting breakthroughs in the field and to open new avenues towards better emulating living systems.

Although one cannot deny the encouraging and stimulating scientific progress achieved to date on the development of bioinspired materials aiming to emulate living systems in in vitro scenarios, there is still plenty of room for further development aiming to translate such efforts into more complicated in vivo scenarios that could open new perspectives in clinical settings. For that to be accomplished, there is the need for more inter- and multidisciplinary research and collaborative efforts among researchers working at the intersection of chemistry, supramolecular chemistry, (bio)materials science and engineering, biomaterials, biotechnology, cell biology and medicine. The integration of complementary knowledge, expertise and diverse perspectives is expected to drive breakthrough research developments in the fascinating field of bioinspired supramolecular systems in more closely emulating the complexity and dynamics of biological systems and creating life-like materials.

These are just a few of the topics covered in this themed collection. As guest editors, we are truly delighted by the immense interest this issue raised among the scientific community with top-quality contributions spanning from fundamental concepts to the biomedical application of (multi)functional bioinspired supramolecular (bio)materials and systems. We would like to thank all authors who contributed with manuscripts, as well as the editorial staff from Journal of Materials Chemistry B for their invaluable support.

This themed issue reflects the breadth of knowledge and development in the fascinating field of bioinspired supramolecular systems, and it is our hope that it will inspire the scientific community to further reflect and pursue groundbreaking development and innovations in the field aiming to better recreate living systems.

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