Browse Articles

An article in Nature Biotechnology reports flexible kirigami-based electronics that allow the non-invasive and long-term recording of electrical activity in neural organoids.

The struggle of establishing a successful academic career while starting a family drives many researchers, in particular, women, out of academia. Pausing the academic clock and individualizing performance assessment may thus help reduce gender inequalities in academia.

Open-source design of medical devices, following the concept of frugal engineering, provides unrestricted descriptions of technical details, allowing the low-cost and local fabrication of devices to reduce global inequities in healthcare.

Combining the precision of CRISPR’s DNA searching ability with the speed and scalability of electronics, we have developed an ‘electronic DNA search engine’, called a CRISPR–Chip, which not only enables DNA detection without amplification, but also showcases the untapped potential of merging molecular biology with nanomaterial electronics. Here, we discuss highlights and challenges on the journey from the initial idea to the commercialization of the CRISPR–Chip.

The mechanisms of nanoparticle delivery to solid tumours guide the engineering of nanoparticles for cancer applications. This Review discusses two contrasting nanoparticle delivery mechanisms, the enhanced permeability and retention effect and the active transport and retention principle, and their implications for the design of cancer nanomedicines.

The current drug development pipeline is time-consuming, costly and inefficient. To better model interactions between pharmaceuticals and human physiology and, thus, increase the likelihood of drug success in clinical trials, the effect of pharmacokinetic drug profiles on cellular behaviour should be tested early in drug development.

An article in Nature Medicine reports soft robotic apparel that improves walking and alleviates freezing of gait associated with Parkinson’s disease.

An article in Nature Communications reports an injectable hydrogel electrode to stimulate and restore the native pacing of the heart.

This Review discusses how biomaterials might enhance the production and delivery of adoptive cell therapies for cancer and other diseases. Eckman et al. emphasize fundamental material and biochemical properties that enable the development of timely, safe and effective therapies.

Fibrotic disease can affect almost all organs, and only few therapies currently exist for the treatment of fibrosis. This Review discusses the contribution of mechanical forces to the onset and progression of fibrosis, highlighting distinct mechanotransduction mechanisms as well as engineered models and therapeutic approaches targeting mechanotransduction pathways for the investigation and treatment of fibrosis, respectively.

Bioplastics are yet to replace commodity plastics. In this Review, we address the barriers faced by bioplastics to obtaining standard labels and certificates and we propose pre-screening methods to optimize these processes. Challenges in production, consumption and disposal are also discussed.

One year in, we take stock of the areas we published, our outreach efforts and our authorship, looking ahead at what comes next in Nature Reviews Bioengineering.

This Review focuses on several facets of synthetic peptide branched polymers including their synthesis, diversity, physicochemical properties and bacteria-killing mechanisms. The current challenges and future applications of synthetic peptide branched polymers in biomedical engineering are highlighted.

The ability to detect precancer at the point of care is important to reduce global inequities in cancer outcomes. This Review outlines how low-cost optical imaging technologies, slide-free microscopy and machine learning can improve imaging performance and provide real-time interpretation in settings with limited resources.

Microneedle technologies for drug delivery and biosensing have progressed through the integration of material sciences, nanotechnologies and electronic devices. This Review discusses the development and clinical translation of microneedle biomedical devices.

Metabolic engineering allows the design of microorganisms for the bioproduction of specific metabolites, such as value-added chemicals. This Review discusses autonomous dynamic regulation approaches, including metabolite-specific transcriptional regulation and non-specific systems using environmental factors, quorum sensing and growth-phase regulation.

Antimicrobial peptides have the potential to combat the growing threat of antimicrobial resistance; however, their clinical translation remains challenging. Here, we discuss molecular farming as a sustainable approach to antimicrobial peptide production, outlining different platforms to produce antimicrobial peptides using plants and viral vectors.

Controlling blood circulation, biodistribution and tissue accessibility of nanomedicines is key to their clinical translation. In this Review, bioengineering strategies to overcome gatekeeping barriers and promote the targeting, safety and efficacy of nanomedicines are discussed.

Regenerative tissue engineering aims to functionally restore damaged tissues. This Review discusses how advances in single-cell RNA sequencing techniques and analysis methods can expand our understanding of tissue injury responses to inform the design of new regenerative biomaterials and therapeutics.

Fluid protein condensates are utilized as precursors in the production of high-performance biological fibres, adhesives and composites. This Review outlines the key role of condensates in the formation of several well-studied biological materials and highlights bioengineered materials with biomedical applications that draw inspiration from these archetypes.