Biodegradable Materials for Electronic Medicine and Biosensors

Biodegradable electronics is an emerging type of device that can completely degrade or resorb in physiological environments. Such devices could play critical roles in therapeutic and diagnostic processes, as they can potentially eliminate device retraction surgery and minimize associated medical complications. By introducing new materials strategies and fabrication approaches, we achieve novel self-electrified and biodegradable nerve conduits based on galvanic cells that can offer both structural guidance and electrical cues for peripheral nerve regeneration. We demonstrate that the conduits successfully promote nerve regrowth and motor functional recovery of injured sciatic nerves in rodents. In another scenario, we propose a flexible and physically transient nitric oxide sensor that can wirelessly realize real-time monitoring in biological systems and could deliver essential information for pertinent diseases and treatments. These works provide new insights for probing and modulating biological functionalities.