Staff member

Enzymatic nanomotors harvest kinetic energy through the catalysis of chemical fuels. When a drop containing nanomotors is placed in a fuel-rich environment, they assemble into ordered groups and exhibit intriguing collective behaviour akin to the bioconvection of aerobic microorganismal suspensions. This collective behaviour presents numerous advantages compared to individual nanomotors, including expanded coverage and prolonged propulsion duration. However, the physical mechanisms underlying the collective motion have yet to be fully elucidated. Our study investigates the formation of enzymatic swarms using experimental analysis and computational modelling. We show that the directional movement of enzymatic nanomotor swarms is due to their solutal buoyancy. We investigate various factors that impact the movement of nanomotor swarms, such as particle concentration, fuel concentration, fuel viscosity, and vertical confinement. We examine the effects of these factors on swarm self-organization to gain a deeper understanding. In addition, the urease catalysis reaction produces ammonia and carbon dioxide, accelerating the directional movement of active swarms in urea compared with passive ones in the same conditions. The numerical analysis agrees with the experimental findings. Our findings are crucial for the potential biomedical applications of enzymatic nanomotor swarms, ranging from enhanced diffusion in bio-fluids and targeted delivery to cancer therapy. Enzymatic nanomotors exhibit collective behaviour in fuel-rich environments, forming swarms with enhanced propulsion and coverage. This study investigates the factors affecting swarm movement, revealing that solutal buoyancy drives their motion, with potential biomedical applications like targeted drug delivery.

JTD Keywords: Ammonia, Behavior, Carbon dioxide, Catalysis, Computer simulation, Kinetics, Motion, Nanostructures, Powered nanomotors, Propulsion, Urease, Viscosity

The integration of flexible organic electronics in soft robotic devices is a valuable way to enhance their functionality, towards augmented controllability and performance. Nonetheless, this field is generally unexplored. Here, we report a preliminary study on the integration of soft robotic components with Organic Field-Effect Transistor-based strain sensors. Such sensors will be tested as deformation transducer for bioengineered muscle tissues operating as biohybrid actuators. Moreover, the integration of ultra-flexible devices on catheter-like soft robotic supports is discussed.

JTD Keywords: Biohybrid actuators, Biohybrid machine, Catheters, Ofets, Strain sensors