Perspective
In vivo photopharmacological inhibition of hippocampal activity via multimodal probes – perspective and opening steps on experimental and computational challenges
A new perspective for the study/treatment of neurological conditions using in vivo photopharmacology is presented, including initial experimental and computational data.
Ion-sensitive field effect transistor biosensors for biomarker detection: current progress and challenges
The ISFET is a label-free, miniaturized, sensitive, and rapid-response sensor for disease screening and monitoring. This review covers its structure, recent researches, challenges, solutions, and future prospects for biomarker measurement.
Artificial spidroin bioelectronic dressings for intelligent wound management
Wound infection has always been a huge threat to human health.
Emerging microelectronic microneedles (eMN) for biomedical applications
As emerging medical tool microneedles have attracted significant attention since puncture the skin noninvasively and painlessly, facilitating tasks such as physiological monitoring, disease diagnosis, and transdermal drug delivery.
Paper
Nanocrystalline cellulose-based mixed ionic–electronic conductor for bioelectronics
A mixed ionic–electronic conductor (MIEC) comprising sulfated cellulose nanocrystals (S-CNCs) as nanotemplate is investigated in organic electrochemical transistors (OECTs) with remarkable channel current and high transconductance values.
Tough and adhesive conductive hydrogels with fast gelation from a polyphenol–aluminium ion dual self-catalysis system for wearable strain sensors and triboelectric nanogenerators
A tough and adhesive conductive double network hydrogel (PVA/PHEAA–TA–Al3+ gel) was prepared via rapid in situ room temperature gelation processes (25 °C, 215 s) in a tannic acid–aluminium ion (TA–Al3+) dual self-catalysis system.
Paper
Photopatterning of conductive hydrogels which exhibit tissue-like properties
Conductive hydrogels patterned with a confocal laser can produce complex shapes that support neuronal growth for over 7 weeks.
A dual-mode wearable sensor with electrophysiological and pressure sensing for cuffless blood pressure monitoring
A wearable dual-mode sensor is created by integrating liquid metal into an ionogel. It can simultaneously monitor both the electrocardiogram and arterial pulse to simplify the measurement of the pulse transit time and thus the blood pressure.
Bioinspired colloidal crystal hydrogel pressure sensors with Janus wettability for uterus cervical canal tension perception
A cervical pressure sensor with stress sensing and selective adhesion inspired by the Janus wettability of lotus leaves.
Paper
Injectable conductive hydrogel electrodes for minimally invasive neural interfaces
An injectable PEDOT:PSS/acetic acid-based hydrogel was formulated with mechanical and electrochemical properties being independently tuneable. The material was characterised in vitro and ex vivo, with prospective applications in neural interfacing.
Benzene layer-aligned electrochemical transformation of SWCNTs to redox-active macro-walled CNTs: enabling oxygen interference-free monitoring of ROS release from HeLa cancer cells
The search for novel carbon allotropes with unique electrochemical properties remains a key area of research in materials science.
On the origin of the biological effects of time varying magnetic fields: quantitative insights
A spherical cell under the influence of a time varying magnetic field (H) inducing an electric field (E) which results in a force (F) and a corresponding stress Sk on the membrane.
Prudently designed Se@fMWCNT as a peroxidase mimicking nanozyme for distinctive electrochemical detection of H2O2 and glutathione
A Se@fMWCNT nanocomposite with peroxidase mimicking activity was used for the electrochemical detection of H2O2 and glutathione. Both analytes were detected using amperometry at a low potential of −0.2 V, with excellent selectivity and sensitivity.
Biodegradable MoNx@Mo-foil electrodes for human-friendly supercapacitors
With the advancement in the field of biomedical research, there is a growing demand for biodegradable electronic devices.
Paper
Drug delivery via a 3D electro-swellable conjugated polymer hydrogel
A glycolated polythiophene, p(g3T2), enables controlled drug loading/release of molecules with molecular weight of 800–6000 Da, due to large, reversible volume changes during electrochemical doping.
About this collection
Bioelectronics, as the name suggests, is a research area on the interface between biology and electronics. It is an interdisciplinary field that combines not only biology and electronics but also many disciplines such as chemistry, physics, materials, and information technology. The aims of bioelectronic research are usually twofold: firstly, studying the electronic processes of biological systems, including the electronic characteristics of biological molecules, information storage and transmission in biological systems, and thus developing new information technologies based on the principles of the biological systems; the second is to apply the theories and technologies of electronic information science to solve biological problems, including the acquisition and analysis of biological information, as well as the regulation of various biological processes. The fundamental mechanism underlying all kinds of bioelectronic processes, including transduction of signal and/or energy, relies on the interfacial properties of materials. The themed collection on bioelectronics across Journal of Materials Chemistry B and Journal of Materials Chemistry C is devoted to the cutting-edge research with a focus on bioelectronic materials.
This Journal of Materials Chemistry B and Journal of Materials Chemistry C themed collection is Guest Edited by Dr Eleonora Macchia (0000-0002-1534-7336, University of Bari, Italy), Professor Hong Liu (0000-0002-9841-1603, Southeast University, China), Professor George Malliaras (0000-0002-4582-8501, University of Cambridge, UK) and Professor Anna Maria Pappa (0000-0002-7980-4073, Khalifa University of Science and Technology, UAE). We hope that this collection will give readers an overview of some of the most recent work concerning bioelectronic materials and will help to promote exciting research in the field.