bims-livmat Biomed News
on Living materials
Issue of 2026–01–25
eight papers selected by
Sara Trujillo Muñoz, Leibniz-Institut für Neue Materialien
  1. Hydrogel platforms for engineered live biotherapeutics: materials, microbial integration and clinical potential.
  2. Bioinspired Engineering of Living Materials to Reconstruct Stromal-Parenchymal Interactions for Post-Stroke Neural Regeneration.
  3. Microbial allies in skin trauma recovery: from immune modulation to engineered probiotic therapeutics.
  4. Engineered living glues secrete therapeutic proteins for treatment of inflammatory bowel disease.
  5. Genetically engineered bacteria with jacketed biofilm for enhancing drug delivery into tumor.
  6. Living Therapeutic Microneedles Integrated with Built-In Metabolic Engines for Autonomous Diabetic Wound Management.
  7. Sequentially responsive nanogels enhance probiotic delivery and reprogram M2 macrophage polarization for synergistic alleviation of colitis.
  8. Injectable living hydrogel as engineered biotherapeutic to promote tooth-extraction wound healing and alveolar bone regeneration.
  1. RSC Pharm. 2026 Jan 09.
    Hydrogel platforms for engineered live biotherapeutics: materials, microbial integration and clinical potential.
    Emma Liane Etter, Sarah Thormann, Srilekha Venkatraman, Sri Sruthi Potluru, Juliane Nguyen.
      Engineered living materials (ELMs), which integrate live microorganisms into biocompatible matrices, are emerging as powerful platforms for therapeutic applications. Among these, hydrogels encapsulating engineered live biotherapeutic products (eLBPs) offer enhanced microbial stability, targeted delivery, and functional versatility for treating human disease. By protecting microbes from environmental stress and immune clearance while supporting nutrient diffusion and activity, hydrogel systems address key challenges in microbial therapeutic delivery. This review highlights recent advances in hydrogel-based delivery of eLBPs, focusing on material design, microbial engineering, and performance metrics critical for clinical translation. We provide a framework for designing next-generation living materials for human health, emphasizing opportunities and challenges in bringing these systems from bench to bedside.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1039/d5pm00304k
  2. Adv Mater. 2026 Jan 19. e12404
    Bioinspired Engineering of Living Materials to Reconstruct Stromal-Parenchymal Interactions for Post-Stroke Neural Regeneration.
    Bingyu Li, Shuguang Li, Jingge Zhang, Zhongmin Gan, Jinjin Wang, Xiaoti Su, Wen Zhao, Zhenzhen Guo, Jinjin Shi, Kaixiang Zhang.
      Stroke remains a leading cause of neurological disability worldwide. A major obstacle to brain tissue regeneration after stroke is the persistent local inflammation and the absence of extracellular matrix (ECM) support within the infarct cavity, which severely impedes the brain's endogenous repair. Inspired by the natural interactions between stromal and parenchymal cells, we developed an engineered living material to recreate a regenerative niche within the stroke cavity. This system integrates a programmable supramolecular DNA hydrogel with interleukin-10-secreting engineered-mesenchymal stem cells (eMSCs) and neural stem cells (NSCs). The hydrogel mimics the structural and mechanical properties of the native ECM, enhancing the retention and viability of transplanted cells. Meanwhile, eMSCs modulate the inflammatory environment, suppress glial scar formation, and promote vascular regeneration, thereby facilitating the neuronal differentiation of NSCs. In a rat model of ischemic stroke, these engineered living materials significantly promote neuronal regeneration, synaptic remodeling, and neovascularization, leading to improved motor and cognitive function. These findings highlight a modular strategy for repairing damaged neural tissues by re-establishing stromal-parenchymal interactions, offering a promising therapeutic avenue for post-stroke brain regeneration.
    Keywords:  DNA hydrogel; inflammation regulation; ischemic stroke; nerve regeneration; stem cells
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1002/adma.202512404
  3. Burns Trauma. 2026 ;14 tkaf068
    Microbial allies in skin trauma recovery: from immune modulation to engineered probiotic therapeutics.
    Aline Yen Ling Wang, Ana Elena Aviña, Yen-Yu Liu, Huang-Kai Kao.
      Research shows that the microbiome of the skin is present as an active contributor to wound healing processes by moving past its historical infection-related function. The review investigates how commensal and probiotic bacteria affect immunomodulation while accelerating epithelial growth, together with tissue repair processes. Researchers use modern methods to link immunological concepts with material science along with synthetic biological techniques to study engineered probiotics which transform current wound treatments. The research study represents an extensive integration of recent findings concerning probiotic-mediated immunomodulatory operations and engineered approaches that improve probiotic delivery systems and their performance during skin wound healing procedures. Recent genetically engineered Lactobacillus reuteri strains that express chemokines like CXCL12 have been found to promote wound healing to an accelerated rate in animal models, and pre-clinical phases of clinical trials in the setting of diabetic foot ulcers (DFU) has demonstrated safety and therapeutic potential. Simultaneously, another live biotherapeutic product has been validated in terms of regenerative and immunomodulatory properties in animal models and in a clinical trial, a multi-cytokine-integrated strain of Lactococcus cremoris secreting FGF-2, IL-4, and CSF-1 promoted faster wound healing in diabetic mice and healed 83% of subjects in a Phase I DFU study. The range of probiotic therapies for trauma care expands due to advancements in probiotic delivery using materials and membrane vesicles derived from probiotics. This review builds a detailed framework that connects core immune functions with modern engineering methods for developing smart wound healing systems that combine engineered probiotics with bioresponsive materials and real-time monitoring systems. Engineered probiotics promise to become an alternative strategy for treating chronic wounds and infection-related complications that currently create significant medical problems.
    Keywords:  Engineered probiotics; Immunoregulation; Microbiome; Probiotics; Skin wound healing; Trauma recovery
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1093/burnst/tkaf068
  4. Nat Biotechnol. 2026 Jan 19.
    Engineered living glues secrete therapeutic proteins for treatment of inflammatory bowel disease.
    Changhao Ge, Shanshan Jiang, Xiaomin Dong, Xiaoyu Jiang, Weiliang Zhi, Chenhao Yang, Yunqing Xiang, Chun Chu, Peilang Yang, Qian Zhang, Xin Chen, Yan Liu, Shuqiang Huang, Yifan Liu, Xiaoshan Shi, Jing Lin, Bolin An, Peng Huang, Chao Zhong.
      Engineering bacteria to secrete gut therapeutics has been limited by their poor autonomous sensing of pathological cues and inability to sustain localized, long-term therapeutic activity. Here we engineer nonpathogenic Escherichia coli with a blood-inducible gene circuit that secretes the barnacle-derived adhesive protein CP43K and the therapeutic gut-barrier-healing factor TFF3 in response to gastrointestinal bleeding, an indicator of severe inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Adhesive production enables sustained bacterial attachment to inflamed tissues for up to 10 days or 7 days following a single rectal or oral administration, respectively. This effect depends on bleeding-induced adhesion. Using two mouse models of IBD, the colitis model induced by dextran sulfate sodium and the interleukin-10-knockout mouse model, we demonstrate improved weight recovery, reversed colonic shortening and reduced intestinal bleeding. Additionally, the treatment decreases intestinal inflammation, promotes mucosal repair and restores gut barrier integrity, demonstrating comprehensive therapeutic efficacy.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1038/s41587-025-02970-9
  5. Mater Today Bio. 2026 Feb;36 102692
    Genetically engineered bacteria with jacketed biofilm for enhancing drug delivery into tumor.
    Aiqing Ma, Jiaxing Wang, Weijian Song, Jiahua Pu, Xiaoyuan Cai, Weijing Han, Yuanyuan Wang, Hong Pan, Jiacheng Ouyang, Senbin Wu, Rourong Chen, Fang Fang, Fei Yan.
      Tumor-targeted bacteria have emerged as promising drug carriers due to their intrinsic motility and hypoxia-homing property. Therapeutic agents can be loaded onto the bacterial surface, enabling their active delivery into tumor tissues. However, premature drug release during systemic circulation-likely triggered by various physiological/physical factors-inevitably results in reduced efficacy or increased off-target toxicity. Here, we present a genetic engineering strategy that enables E. coli MG1655 (EC) to autonomously produce a biofilm "jacket" on its surface (termed MEC) by regulating the expression of the biofilm-associated Csg gene cluster. This biofilm coating markedly enhances drug adsorption (1.7-fold increase for the model drug indocyanine green, ICG) and effectively prevents off-target leakage during systemic circulation. Benefiting from its tumor-homing capability and biofilm-mediated protection, MEC can deliver substantially more ICG into tumor inner regions. In murine tumor models, MEC-mediated delivery achieves significantly enhanced intratumoral drug retention and photothermal efficacy in comparison with the wild-type bacterial carrier. This work demonstrates an effective tumor-targeted drug delivery strategy based on genetically engineered biofilm technology, offering a promising avenue for precision bacterial oncology.
    Keywords:  Drug delivery; Jacketed-biofilm bacteria; Live bacterial carriers; Photothermal therapy; Tumor penetration
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mtbio.2025.102692
  6. Nano Lett. 2026 Jan 21.
    Living Therapeutic Microneedles Integrated with Built-In Metabolic Engines for Autonomous Diabetic Wound Management.
    Caihong Chen, Haoyu Gong, Biao Yang, Runxin Teng, Jiamin Zhang, Chun Yang, Beibei Zhang, Jianhua Li, Hongru Qiang, Jiaxi Xu, Zhen Fan, Chang Li, Jianzhong Du.
      Chronic diabetic wounds remain one of the most intractable complications of diabetes, demanding therapeutic strategies that can simultaneously regulate local glucose levels, combat persistent infections, and promote angiogenesis. Here, we engineer a living-therapeutic microneedle system that integrates metabolically active probiotics with a pH-responsive carboxymethyl chitosan/l-arginine matrix to autonomously orchestrate wound microenvironment remodeling. Leveraging the unique metabolic capacity of Lactobacillus reuteri, our system rapidly and sustainably reduces local hyperglycemia (84.8% reduction over 48 h) while generating broad-spectrum antimicrobial reuterin in situ, circumventing drawbacks of conventional antibiotics. In parallel, a microneedle matrix scavenges reactive oxygen species and drives robust angiogenesis. In infected diabetic mice, a single administration can accelerate wound closure by 7.3-fold, eliminate pathogens via synergistic bactericidal and nutrient-competition mechanisms, and restore normoglycemia without rebound. This synergistic "metabolic engine-microenvironment modulation" paradigm addresses key barriers in diabetic wound healing and offers a scalable platform for living microbe-material therapeutics in chronic disease management.
    Keywords:  Lactobacillus reuteri; autonomous therapy; diabetic wound; glucose; microneedle
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.nanolett.5c06163
  7. J Control Release. 2026 Jan 20. pii: S0168-3659(26)00053-2. [Epub ahead of print] 114652
    Sequentially responsive nanogels enhance probiotic delivery and reprogram M2 macrophage polarization for synergistic alleviation of colitis.
    Weigang Zhong, Lei Xu, Xuehui Zhang, Xuming Deng, Xue Shen.
      The interplay of multiple pathologic features in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) persistently disrupts M2 macrophage-mediated intestinal wound repair. Although probiotic therapy represents a sustainable IBD treatment strategy for IBD, it is still limited by inefficient oral delivery and inability to simultaneously adress multiple pathologic features. Accordingly, a multifunctional integrated nanogels (Se-MHA/BG NGs) with both sequential response and diverse bioactivities were designed for coating the model probiotic Escherichia coli Nissle 1917 (EcN@Se-MHA/BG) in this study. During digestion, EcN@Se-MHA/BG formed insoluble complexes to protect EcN against acidic pH conditions, while the diselenide-crosslinked NGs coating degraded rapidly in response to the high levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) characteristic of inflammatory microenvironments, thereby improving the colonization efficiency of EcN by 560%. Moreover, the degraded NGs, functionalized with mannose moieties, promoted the uptake efficiency of M2 macrophages and inhibited their repolarization by alleviating IBD-related symptoms of epithelial barrier damage, cellular oxidative stress and inflammation. Based on these functions, EcN@Se-MHA/BG exerted both therapeutic and prophylactic effects to improve colonic pathological symptoms and positively regulate gut microbiota in DSS-induced murine colitis model. Overall, Se-MHA/BG NGs demonstrated promising potential as a versatile coating system to enhance the clinical therapeutic performance of probiotic-based therapies for IBD.
    Keywords:  Hyaluronic acid; Inflammatory bowel disease; M2 macrophage; Nanogel; Probiotic coating
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jconrel.2026.114652
  8. Bioact Mater. 2026 May;59 355-369
    Injectable living hydrogel as engineered biotherapeutic to promote tooth-extraction wound healing and alveolar bone regeneration.
    Jingmei Guo, Wenlong Lei, Boyi Li, Kaifeng Li, Jiyun Li, Zhuoran Wang, He Liu, Cui Huang, Ya Shen.
      Effective wound healing and functional bone regeneration following tooth extraction remain clinical challenges, underscoring the significant need for multifunctional strategies that address the complex, multistage and translational demands of socket management. Herein, an injectable live biotherapeutic hydrogel was fabricated by integrating probiotic Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (LGG) and calcium phosphate nanoparticles (CP NPs) into a photopolymerizable poly (ethylene glycol) (PEG) matrix. Upon in situ injection and activation with dental blue light, the hydrogel rapidly forms a conformal, protective and bioactive scaffold to the extraction socket. Therapeutically, LGG probiotics remodel the wound microenvironment through antibacterial and immunomodulatory bioactivities to promote early-stage healing. Simultaneously, LGG can facilitate the release of calcium and phosphate ions from CP NPs, which synergizes with microbe-assisted biomineralization to promote osteogenic differentiation and bone regeneration. In vitro and in vivo validations confirmed that this probiotic-mineral biotherapeutic hydrogel concurrently integrates infection control, immune regulation, and osteoinduction within a single clinically deployable platform, representing not only a transformative strategy for post-extraction socket management but also a paradigm for the development of living biomaterials in dynamic tissue engineering applications.
    Keywords:  Bone regeneration; Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG; Live biotherapeutic hydrogels; Tooth-extraction socket; Wound healing
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bioactmat.2025.12.051
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