Project Details
Projekt
Adaptive capsule-based materials for programming engineered living systems
Applicants
Professorin Dr. Elisabetta Ada Cavalcanti-Adam; Professorin Dr. Karin Jacobs; Professorin Dr. Christine Selhuber-Unkel, Ph.D.
Subject Area
Biomaterials
Term
since 2024
Project identifier
Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 541302782
Engineered living materials (ELMs) offer unparalleled promise for the generation of advanced, sustainable materials, due to their inherent adaptability and multifunctionality, especially in biohybrid living actuating systems. However, a current drawback of such systems is that they are not able to adapt their shape and expand over time, as well as the lack in long-term functional cell systems. We here propose an approach to generate spatially and temporally adaptive materials by developing a biomaterial composed of protein microcapsules, mimicking the extracellular matrix’s biochemical properties. Prior to cell experiments, we will carry out a detailed characterization of these capsules, including biocompatibility, mechanical testing and surface structure characterization. The density of this granular capsule material will be controlled by two-photon polymerization. Using their adhesion and mechanotransduction machinery, cells within this adaptive matrix can autonomously modify and expand the material. By using capsules with embedded growth factors, such as bone morphogenetic proteins, we aim to guide myogenic and osteogenic differentiation with spatial precision, enabling us to achieve and further advance functional materials systems in the long run, e.g. functioning as biohybrid robots.
DFG Programme
Priority Programmes
