Spider-silk inspired electrode offers new possibilities for the next generation of biomedical devices
An international team of scientists has developed a flexible electrode that wraps around muscles, nerves and hearts to deliver electrical stimulation to tissues or record electrical activity. Inspired by spider silk, the ...
The innovation could open the door to biomedical devices for monitoring irregular heartbeat, nerve repair, wound closure and scar reduction.
The study was published in Nature in December and led by Prof. Chen Xiaodong of NTU's School of Materials Science and Engineering; Prof. Gao Huajian of NTU's School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering; Prof. Liu Zhiyuan from the Chinese Academy of Sciences; and Prof. Hu Benhui from Nanjing Medical University.
Learning how to contract from nature
The electrode is made from a flexible material that contracts when wet to fit securely around tissues and organs.
Drawing inspiration from the structure of spider silk that enables it to contract when wet, the scientists created the material by mixing a compound called semicrystalline poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) with another compound poly(ethylene glycol)-α-cyclodextrin inclusion complex (IC). IC connects the PEO semicrystalline structures and holds them together.
Making the contractile material: The mixture is poured and dried to form a film. Then, the film is stretched repeatedly. Credit: NTU Singapore