Boosting hydrogel conductivity via water-dispersible conducting polymers for injectable bioelectronics
Abstract Bioelectronic devices hold transformative potential for healthcare diagnostics and therapeutics. Yet, traditional electronic implants often require invasive surgeries and are mechanically incompatible with biological tissues. Injectable hydrogel bioelectronics offer a minimally invasive al...
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| Format: | Article |
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Nature Portfolio
2025-04-01
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| Series: | Nature Communications |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-59045-1 |
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| author | Hossein Montazerian Elham Davoodi Canran Wang Farnaz Lorestani Jiahong Li Reihaneh Haghniaz Rohan R. Sampath Neda Mohaghegh Safoora Khosravi Fatemeh Zehtabi Yichao Zhao Negar Hosseinzadeh Tianhan Liu Tzung K. Hsiai Alireza Hassani Najafabadi Robert Langer Daniel G. Anderson Paul S. Weiss Ali Khademhosseini Wei Gao |
| author_facet | Hossein Montazerian Elham Davoodi Canran Wang Farnaz Lorestani Jiahong Li Reihaneh Haghniaz Rohan R. Sampath Neda Mohaghegh Safoora Khosravi Fatemeh Zehtabi Yichao Zhao Negar Hosseinzadeh Tianhan Liu Tzung K. Hsiai Alireza Hassani Najafabadi Robert Langer Daniel G. Anderson Paul S. Weiss Ali Khademhosseini Wei Gao |
| author_sort | Hossein Montazerian |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Bioelectronic devices hold transformative potential for healthcare diagnostics and therapeutics. Yet, traditional electronic implants often require invasive surgeries and are mechanically incompatible with biological tissues. Injectable hydrogel bioelectronics offer a minimally invasive alternative that interfaces with soft tissue seamlessly. A major challenge is the low conductivity of bioelectronic systems, stemming from poor dispersibility of conductive additives in hydrogel mixtures. We address this issue by engineering doping conditions with hydrophilic biomacromolecules, enhancing the dispersibility of conductive polymers in aqueous systems. This approach achieves a 5-fold increase in dispersibility and a 20-fold boost in conductivity compared to conventional methods. The resulting conductive polymers are molecularly and in vivo degradable, making them suitable for transient bioelectronics applications. These additives are compatible with various hydrogel systems, such as alginate, forming ionically cross-linkable conductive inks for 3D-printed wearable electronics toward high-performance physiological monitoring. Furthermore, integrating conductive fillers with gelatin-based bioadhesive hydrogels substantially enhances conductivity for injectable sealants, achieving 250% greater sensitivity in pH sensing for chronic wound monitoring. Our findings indicate that hydrophilic dopants effectively tailor conducting polymers for hydrogel fillers, enhancing their biodegradability and expanding applications in transient implantable biomonitoring. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-58cb58c052d6422dabc3a06d0308b264 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2041-1723 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-04-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nature Communications |
| spelling | doaj-art-58cb58c052d6422dabc3a06d0308b2642025-08-20T03:21:03ZengNature PortfolioNature Communications2041-17232025-04-0116111510.1038/s41467-025-59045-1Boosting hydrogel conductivity via water-dispersible conducting polymers for injectable bioelectronicsHossein Montazerian0Elham Davoodi1Canran Wang2Farnaz Lorestani3Jiahong Li4Reihaneh Haghniaz5Rohan R. Sampath6Neda Mohaghegh7Safoora Khosravi8Fatemeh Zehtabi9Yichao Zhao10Negar Hosseinzadeh11Tianhan Liu12Tzung K. Hsiai13Alireza Hassani Najafabadi14Robert Langer15Daniel G. Anderson16Paul S. Weiss17Ali Khademhosseini18Wei Gao19David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyMechanical Engineering Department, University of UtahAndrew and Peggy Cherng Department of Medical Engineering, Division of Engineering and Applied Science, California Institute of TechnologyDepartment of Engineering Science and Mechanics, Pennsylvania State University, University ParkAndrew and Peggy Cherng Department of Medical Engineering, Division of Engineering and Applied Science, California Institute of TechnologyTerasaki Institute for Biomedical InnovationDepartment of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California, Los AngelesTerasaki Institute for Biomedical InnovationTerasaki Institute for Biomedical InnovationTerasaki Institute for Biomedical InnovationDavid H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyTerasaki Institute for Biomedical InnovationDepartment of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California, Los AngelesDepartment of Bioengineering, University of California, Los AngelesTerasaki Institute for Biomedical InnovationDavid H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyDavid H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyDepartment of Bioengineering, University of California, Los AngelesTerasaki Institute for Biomedical InnovationAndrew and Peggy Cherng Department of Medical Engineering, Division of Engineering and Applied Science, California Institute of TechnologyAbstract Bioelectronic devices hold transformative potential for healthcare diagnostics and therapeutics. Yet, traditional electronic implants often require invasive surgeries and are mechanically incompatible with biological tissues. Injectable hydrogel bioelectronics offer a minimally invasive alternative that interfaces with soft tissue seamlessly. A major challenge is the low conductivity of bioelectronic systems, stemming from poor dispersibility of conductive additives in hydrogel mixtures. We address this issue by engineering doping conditions with hydrophilic biomacromolecules, enhancing the dispersibility of conductive polymers in aqueous systems. This approach achieves a 5-fold increase in dispersibility and a 20-fold boost in conductivity compared to conventional methods. The resulting conductive polymers are molecularly and in vivo degradable, making them suitable for transient bioelectronics applications. These additives are compatible with various hydrogel systems, such as alginate, forming ionically cross-linkable conductive inks for 3D-printed wearable electronics toward high-performance physiological monitoring. Furthermore, integrating conductive fillers with gelatin-based bioadhesive hydrogels substantially enhances conductivity for injectable sealants, achieving 250% greater sensitivity in pH sensing for chronic wound monitoring. Our findings indicate that hydrophilic dopants effectively tailor conducting polymers for hydrogel fillers, enhancing their biodegradability and expanding applications in transient implantable biomonitoring.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-59045-1 |
| spellingShingle | Hossein Montazerian Elham Davoodi Canran Wang Farnaz Lorestani Jiahong Li Reihaneh Haghniaz Rohan R. Sampath Neda Mohaghegh Safoora Khosravi Fatemeh Zehtabi Yichao Zhao Negar Hosseinzadeh Tianhan Liu Tzung K. Hsiai Alireza Hassani Najafabadi Robert Langer Daniel G. Anderson Paul S. Weiss Ali Khademhosseini Wei Gao Boosting hydrogel conductivity via water-dispersible conducting polymers for injectable bioelectronics Nature Communications |
| title | Boosting hydrogel conductivity via water-dispersible conducting polymers for injectable bioelectronics |
| title_full | Boosting hydrogel conductivity via water-dispersible conducting polymers for injectable bioelectronics |
| title_fullStr | Boosting hydrogel conductivity via water-dispersible conducting polymers for injectable bioelectronics |
| title_full_unstemmed | Boosting hydrogel conductivity via water-dispersible conducting polymers for injectable bioelectronics |
| title_short | Boosting hydrogel conductivity via water-dispersible conducting polymers for injectable bioelectronics |
| title_sort | boosting hydrogel conductivity via water dispersible conducting polymers for injectable bioelectronics |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-59045-1 |
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