In-vivo polymerization of conjugated polyelectrolytes in plants and animals.
Eleni Stavrinidou a
a Laboratory of Organic Electronics, Department of Science and Technology, Linköping University, SE-601 74 Norrköping, Sweden
Materials for Sustainable Development Conference (MATSUS)
Proceedings of MATSUS Fall 2023 Conference (MATSUSFall23)
#BIOELCHEM - Bioelectrochemical Systems from Sustainable Electrode Materials
Torremolinos, Spain, 2023 October 16th - 20th
Organizers: Anna-Maria Pappa and Kyriaki Polychronopoulou
Invited Speaker, Eleni Stavrinidou, presentation 133
DOI: https://doi.org/10.29363/nanoge.matsus.2023.133
Publication date: 18th July 2023

Leveraging the biocatalytic machinery of living organisms for in-vivo fabrication of functional bioelectronic interfaces enables seamless integration of devices in tissue and formation of biohybrid systems. Previously we have demonstrated that plants can polymerize conjugated oligomers in-vivo forming conductors within their structure. We showed that the polymerization is enzymatically catalyzed by endogenous peroxidases, and we developed a series of conjugated oligomers that can be enzymatically polymerized in physiological conditions. The conjugated polyelectrolytes integrate within the plant cell wall structure adding electronic functionality into the plant that is then explored for energy storage. Recently we demonstrated intact plants with electronic roots that continue to grow enabling plant-biohybrid systems that maintain fully their biological processes. The electronic roots are used to build supercapacitors and biohybrid circuits to power low power electrochemical devices. Furthermore, we have extended this concept into an animal model system. We demonstrated that Hydra, an invertebrate animal, can polymerize intracellularly conjugated oligomers in cells that expresses peroxidase activity. The conjugated polymer forms electronically conducting and electrochemically active domains in the µm range integrated within the hydra tissue. Our work paves the way for self-organized electronics in plant and animal tissue for modulating biological functions and in-vivo bio-fabrication of hybrid functional materials and devices.

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