Silk fibroin (silk) is a naturally-derived polymer with high utility in biomedical contexts, notably in tissue engineering. Silk bulk properties can be tuned to mechanically match a range of biological environments, including soft and hard tissues. As with other naturally-derived polymers, silk constructs degrade via surface-mediated enzymatic hydrolysis into non-toxic amino acid byproducts. Because tissue engineering relies on the underlying scaffold to degrade as the healthy tissue forms, controlling silk scaffold degradation kinetics is essential to maximize silk’s utility. Notably, prior work to control silk degradation kinetics relies on either altering silk matrix properties (i.e., manipulating the secondary structure), or through creating silk-containing blends such as copolymers. Although both strategies effectively control degradation, doing so is often at the expense of mechanical properties. Any mechanical mismatch induced through controlling degradation can hinder scaffold function. Developing a strategy to program silk degradation - without altering bulk mechanical properties - is required to enhance their efficacy as biomaterials.

This talk will highlight recent efforts to develop a radio-frequency plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) approach with the potential to modulate silk degradation. The long-term objective of this work is to control the rate of surface-mediated enzymatic hydrolysis by customizing silk surface properties. Surface properties are thought to be paramount in controlling silk construct/enzyme interactions, so tuning silk film surface properties using PECVD was a logical first step. Silk films were first dropcasted, and were then subjected to PECVD. Plasma feedgas composition was tuned using two unique precursors: acrylic acid (to produce thin films with polar functional groups on the silk surface), and pentane (to produce thin films with non-polar functional groups on the silk surface). Plasma polymerization using mixed precursor conditions was also explored. Contact angle goniometry was utilized to evaluate the wettability of all plasma-modified and control silk films. Changes in surface chemistry were evaluated using high-resolution x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Collectively, findings demonstrated that surface properties depend on both feedgas composition and position of the silk film in the plasma reactor. In sum, PECVD represents a promising approach to customize silk surface properties.

Biopotential signals are used to assess organ function and make diagnoses. Biopotential electrodes are used to monitor and record biopotentials by acting as an interface between biological tissue and electrical circuits. The accurate detection of physiological signals from the human body is essential for health monitoring, preventive care, and treatments.

Wearable bioelectronics developments applied directly on the epidermal surface provide a promising future biopotential sensing option. Wearable textile electrodes for biopotential sensing are a promising candidate for long-term health monitoring. Wearable health-monitoring devices should be simple to use, stigma-free, and capable of delivering high-quality data. Smart textiles, which incorporate electronic elements directly into the fabric, offer a seamless way to incorporate sensors into garments for a variety of purposes. This work describes different types of flexible and reusable textile-based dry electrodes for biopotential monitoring. This work also describes the direct writing of laser-induced graphene (LIG) on a Kevlar textile for the production of reusable dry electrodes for long-term ECG monitoring. The electrode as-prepared has a high electrical conductivity and skin contact impedance of 100 ± 1 kΩ to 7.9 ± 2.7 kΩ for frequencies ranging from 40 Hz to 1 kHz, which is comparable to conventional Ag/AgCl wet electrodes.

The outcomes demonstrate comparable performance with significantly reduced electrode-skin impedance for clinical-grade devices. Even after several hours of usage, these electrodes do not irritate the skin and are effective without any skin preparation. As a result of their flexibility and a better match to the modulus of the skin, it is anticipated that the suggested dry electrodes will provide comfort for long-term biopotential monitoring. A simple, cost-effective, and scalable fabrication approach enables the fabrication of flexible electrodes of arbitrary shape for long-term biopotential monitoring.

1. Y. Maithani, B. Choudhuri, B. R. Mehta, and J. P. Singh: Self-adhesive, Stretchable, and Dry Silver Nanorods Embedded Polydimethylsiloxane Biopotential Electrodes for Electrocardiography. Sensors Actuators A Phys.332, 113068 (2021).
2. Y. Maithani, B. Choudhuri, B. R. Mehta, and J. P. Singh: Modelling and Analysis of Active Biopotential Signals in Healthcare , Volume 2 A comprehensive review of the fabrication and performance evaluation of dry electrodes for long ‐ term ECG monitoring. IOP Publ. Ltd 20202(chapter 8), 1 (2020).

Materials with intricate nanostructures display wetting properties that modern technologies already use to lubricate engines or waterproof clothing. Yet, their full potential in applications for sustainable catalysis, air purification or biosensing cannot be realised until we understand how nano-objects adsorb to surfaces with features of comparable size. Indeed, controlling or even predicting how proteins, antibodies, exosomes, surfactant or nanoparticles stick to nano-engineered surfaces is a challenge because key aspects of the wetting phenomenon remain poorly understood at this scale. In this talk, I will briefly review what we currently know about “nanowetting”.¹ I will then introduce the concept of plasma polymerisation as a technique to control both surface chemistry and surface topography. I’ll use the example of plasma deposited polyoxazoline (POx) to highlight this technique’s attributes, drawbacks and recent progress made in understanding the unique chemistry and reactivity of POx films, using both plasma in-situ and post deposition spectroscopic analysis.²Plasma deposited Polyoxazoline thin films share many valuable properties with polyoxazoline prepared via conventional organic chemistry: they are biocompatible, non-cytotoxic and low fouling.³ What is more, they bind biomolecules covalently, support cell adhesion, and are generated in a solvent free, single step process, which makes them particularly attractive for industrialization. For these reasons, plasma deposited polyoxazoline are used in applied biomedical research, from in vitro stem cell culture to controlling immune responses.⁴

I’ll conclude this presentation with tangible outcomes of the translational research projects I’ve conducted with various industries, where we used nanoengineered plasma polymers, to create materials for cancer diagnosis and growing organoids.⁵

[1]M. MacGregor and K. Vasilev. Advanced Materials Interfaces,4, 1700381.,2017;M. MacGregor et al., Nanoscale, 8(8),4635-4642, 2016

[2] M. Macgregor*et al.Chemistry of Materials, 29(19)8047-51, 2017; M. N. MacGregor-Ramiasa et al., J. Mat. Chem. B, 3, 6327-6337, 2015

[3]M. N. Ramiasa et al. Chem. Commun., 51, 4279-4282,2015;A. A. Cavallaro, M. N. Macgregor-Ramiasa, K. Vasilev, ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces8, 6354, 2016.

[4] R. M. Visalakshan, A. A. Cavallaro, M. N. MacGregor, et al. Adv. Funct. Mat., 29, 1807453, 2019;

[5]M. MacGregor*et al. Biosensors and Bioelectronics, 171: 112699,2020; K.M. Chan […]M. MacGregor*Cancers 13(21), 5544 2021