Xinhua Liu

Ionic thermoelectric (i-TE) materials have garnered significant interest for self-powered wearable systems owing to their exceptionally high thermopower, yet their practical implementation is often hindered by the difficulty in reconciling high thermoelectric performance with mechanical robustness and functional integration. Here, we develop a poly(vinyl alcohol)/gelatin double-network thermoelectric gel featuring a co-design of electron-ion hybrid transport channels for high-performance energy conversion and multimodal sensing. The incorporation of carboxylated multi-walled carbon nanotubes and DMSO-treated PEDOT:PSS establishes a continuous electron-conduction pathway, while a KI/I₂ redox system provides strong ionic thermodiffusion. Glycerol serves as a stabilizing agent to improve phase compatibility and structural integrity. This architecture effectively breaks the conventional trade-off between thermopower and electrical conductivity, yielding a high Seebeck coefficient of 5.90 mV K⁻¹ and electrical conductivity of 4.70 S m⁻¹. The gel also exhibits outstanding stretchability (>600%), elastic recovery, and damage reparability, retaining over 90% of its original thermoelectric performance after repeated repair. It further enables strain and temperature sensing, electromagnetic-interference shielding, antibacterial activity, and proof-of-concept on-skin monitoring of motion, temperature, respiration, and electrocardiogram signals. These results demonstrate a multifunctional gel platform for wearable energy harvesting and sensing.

Wearable bio-based fibers are emerging as platforms for biomechanical sensing and physiological interaction. However, achieving high sensitivity to subtle mechanical cues while maintaining flexibility, self-powered output, and distributed perception remains challenging. Inspired by the helical twining mechanics of climbing plant stems, we design a mechano-adaptive auxetic electronic bio-based fiber as an embodied intelligence sensing unit. The dual-modulus helical confinement, achieved by wrapping rigid aramid fiber/polydimethylsiloxane helices around a flexible collagen aggregate/waterborne polyurethane core, enables programmable deformation and a stable negative Poisson’s ratio (ν = −0.47). Nonlinear intercomponent coupling facilitates synergistic axial-radial dynamics, amplifying interfacial contact variation under strain. The optimized fiber exhibits ultrahigh sensitivity (strain factor: 11.75), strong electrical output (8.1 volts), and remarkable power density (8.48 milliwatts per square meter) with excellent cyclic stability. Integrated into fiber-sensing arrays, it decodes microstrain patterns linked to lower-limb function, offering a scalable strategy for self-powered, adaptive, and durable biomechanical monitoring.

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a dramatic surge in face mask usage, while worsening air pollution continues to pose persistent threats to human health. However, conventional masks rely primarily on physical filtration, inevitably release microplastics (MPs) during use and disposal, risk secondary pollution upon improper handling, and lack the capability for real-time monitoring of exhaled volatile biomarkers, which is essential for the noninvasive diagnosis of respiratory diseases. Herein, we present an all-natural asymmetric air filter (AM-Filter) integrated with a SnS2 nanosheet sensor, inspired by the hierarchical architecture of plant and collagen fibers and fabricated via a paper-making process. This design synergistically enables microplastic elimination, pathogen inactivation, and NO2 monitoring within a breathable framework. The Janus structure consists of a bactericidal A-layer, where silver-chitosan nanoparticles are anchored onto modified collagen fibers (>88.27% bacterial reduction), and an EPTAC-functionalized M-layer for irreversible microplastic capture. Molecular engineering of the plant/collagen fibers confers directional water vapor transport through asymmetric wettability modulation, ensuring thermal and moisture comfort. The embedded SnS2 sensor, applied via a facile spray-coating method, provides real-time NO2 detection with a sensitivity of 42.35% and a recovery time of 171.4 s. Owing to its all-natural composition, the AM-Filter achieves filtration efficiencies (90.68% for PM1.0 and 93.54% for PM2.5) together with excellent breathability, and completely biodegrades in soil within four months. It also exhibits outstanding thermal stability and hypoallergenic properties. This work pioneers a sustainable paradigm for multifunctional protective gear that simultaneously addresses microplastic pollution mitigation, environmental surveillance, and user comfort.

Grape ( Vitis vinifera ), a globally cultivated fruit, generates substantial by-products (seeds, peels, pomace, and stems) during wine and juice production.

Self-powered flexible sensors exhibit revolutionary potential in next-generation wearable technologies owing to their exceptional sensitivity and self-sustaining energy harvesting capabilities. Nevertheless, their widespread deployment remains constrained by three fundamental challenges: dynamic mechanical mismatch between biological tissues and rigid devices, suboptimal energy conversion efficiency, and interfacial impedance fluctuation under deformation. Drawing inspiration from the unique negative Poisson’s ratio mesh architecture of lacewing wings, we present a bioinspired auxetic metastructure-engineered triboelectric nanogenerator. This innovative design integrates engineered collagen and micropatterned fluorinated ethylene propylene as triboelectric layers, unified by an auxetic framework with re-entrant hexagonal unit cells interconnected via triangular ligaments. The metastructure enables exceptional lateral expansion under longitudinal strain while simultaneously enhancing structural rigidity and deformation adaptability. This dual functionality effectively minimizes tissue–device mechanical mismatch, thereby significantly improving signal fidelity, sensitivity, and mechanical-to-electrical conversion efficiency during multi-axial deformations. The optimized device achieves remarkable performance metrics, delivering 478 V output voltage with 13.8% energy conversion efficiency in linear configuration, while demonstrating threefold enhanced stability (58 V, 7.58% efficiency) under complex bending compared to conventional designs. Integrated with a convolutional neural network-based machine learning enables exceptional classification accuracy (> 99%) across diverse material recognition tasks, validating its robustness as a next-generation platform for adaptive self-powered wearable sensing.

Plant‐wearable sensors are essential for real‐time, in situ monitoring in smart agriculture, yet their adoption is constrained by functional simplicity and inadequate mechanical compliance. Herein, we present a conformable plant‐attachable Janus electronic skin (SPM/HMA@P) for multimodal phenotyping. Featuring a scenario‐specific encapsulation strategy fabricated via a bottom‐up approach, the device enables non‐invasive monitoring of multiple physiological parameters. The sensor integrates a conductive base composed of biocompatible quaternized chitosan, multi‐walled carbon nanotubes, and silver nanowires, a gas‐sensing functional layer, and an adhesive polydimethylsiloxane encapsulation. In the fully encapsulated configuration, SPM/HMA@P exhibits a 210.9% fracture elongation and an adhesion force exceeding 0.3 N on leaves, alongside excellent biocompatibility. This configuration allows for simultaneous monitoring of leaf temperature and growth‐induced strain, maintaining stable signals over 5 days. Conversely, the semi‐open configuration demonstrates high ethylene sensitivity (0.5–100 ppm, theoretical detection limit of 0.12 ppm), with response and recovery times of 300 and 120 s, and a lifespan of over 10 days. Coupled with a convolutional neural network (CNN), it achieves 96.8% accuracy in classifying ethylene signals from fruits. This robust multimodal platform addresses key challenges in plant physiological monitoring, holding great potential for smart crop breeding, postharvest assessment, and phenotyping.

Sensitive skin caused by environmental and seasonal factors has become a global issue, and daily skin care can help alleviate symptoms through gentle formulations with effective ingredients. This study aimed to develop and evaluate a multifunctional lotus-leaf-extract-based nanoformulation for sensitive skin care, integrating whitening, barrier restoration, and moisturizing effects. The cream was structurally characterized as an oil-in-water (O/W) emulsion through oil/water dilution, cobalt chloride paper impregnation, and microscopic analyses, which collectively confirmed its O/W structure. Rheological testing and stability analysis revealed pseudoplastic behavior with low viscosity, ensuring rapid absorption and minimal residue, while maintaining stability and robustness under extreme temperatures (-20 to 45 °C, 72 h) and centrifugation (3000 rpm for 30 min). Functional assessments demonstrated strong antioxidant activity (71.01% DPPH scavenging at 0.10 g mL^-1) and sustained moisturization (65.23% retention over 24 h), along with broad-spectrum UV absorbance (280-400 nm) indicating photoprotective potential comparable to standard UV filters. Safety profiling confirmed biological compatibility through pH testing and antimicrobial efficacy against E. coli and S. aureus and showed mild irritation in CAM assays, with an ES score of 3.0 indicating a mild level of irritation. Mechanistically, the formulation acts via synergistic antioxidant and anti-inflammatory pathways to mitigate oxidative stress, restore epidermal barrier integrity, and suppress melanogenesis, and these mechanistic insights are inferred from the literature evidence rather than direct in vitro or in vivo experiments. Overall, these findings highlight the lotus-leaf-extract-based nanoformulation as a dual-action therapeutic strategy for sensitive skin, effectively combining whitening efficacy with barrier repair.

The rising global incidence of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is strongly linked to gut microbiota dysbiosis driven by modern lifestyle factors, particularly dietary irregularities and antibiotic overuse. Probiotic supplementation represents a promising therapeutic strategy for microbiota modulation; specifically, Lactobacillus reuteri has been shown to improve microbial community structure, suppress colonization by pathogens, and mitigate intestinal disorders. This study introduces a hierarchically structured double‐encapsulated probiotic system, termed “core–shell” AMS@Eud, which integrates calcium alginate microspheres with a Eudragit® resin coating. This design enables pH‐responsive release and ensures superior protection of probiotic viability. After optimization, AMS@Eud demonstrated outstanding storage stability, with only 5.28% and 9.09% reduction in L. reuteri viability after 35 days at 4°C and 25°C, respectively, thereby eliminating the need for cold‐chain logistics. Under simulated gastrointestinal conditions, the system maintained a high viability of 84.60 ± 2.59% for L. reuteri , whereas free probiotics were entirely inactivated. A comprehensive bio‐safety evaluation confirmed its excellent biocompatibility and minimal hemolytic activity, with in vivo studies revealing no adverse effects on major organs. Furthermore, this platform significantly enriched beneficial gut microbes while reducing pro‐inflammatory taxa, effectively overcoming two major limitations of conventional probiotic therapy. Thus, AMS@Eud provides a transformative strategy for IBD management through precision microbiota engineering.

Microneedles (MNs) have emerged as a transformative minimally invasive platform in biomedicine, enabling painless transdermal drug delivery and diagnostic applications. However, conventional MNs face critical limitations, including functional singularity, inefficient drug utilization, and immune complications. Recent advancements in electroactive bio-microneedles (Ebio-MNs) offer innovative solutions by synergizing electrical responsiveness with biological adaptability, facilitating intelligent closed-loop theranostic integration. This review comprehensively explains the core mechanism of the electroactivity strategy and the development and current status of Ebio-MN intelligent diagnosis and treatment, while systematically analyzing progress in Ebio-MN classifications, functional base materials (e.g., conductive polymers, metallic/carbon composites, ionic conductors), and precision manufacturing technologies (e.g., lithography, 3D printing, MEMS). Special emphasis is placed on bioinspired structural designs that enhance tissue compliance and electrochemical interfaces. In the therapeutic domain, Ebio-MNs demonstrate multifunctional advantages in stimuli-responsive drug release, real-time biomarker tracking, and electrostimulation-enhanced wound healing through mechanisms such as electrical modulation. Case studies highlight their biomedical applications in diabetes management, chronic wound repair, and tumor electrochemotherapy, showcasing integrated devices capable of simultaneous monitoring and intervention. By bridging MN innovation with intelligent system design, this review outlines a roadmap for next-generation personalized theranostic platforms, offering critical insights into electrically driven biointerfaces and closed-loop healthcare solutions.