Gelling with cells

The field of bioelectronics seeks to integrate electronic devices with the human body to improve health without the rigidity and excess bulk of traditional tools. The newest bioelectronic prototype from the lab of UChicago chemistry professor Bozhi Tian combines electronics with living bacteria to heal skin wounds. Detailed in a May 30 study in Science, the device adheres a flexible circuit, with sensors that monitor the skin, to a layer of tissue-like gelatin populated with Staphylococcus epidermis, a bacterium that naturally protects the skin barrier. Mice showed significant reduction in psoriasis-like symptoms in short-term tests, but the device can also be freeze-dried and stored for long-term or ongoing treatments. The researchers believe the concept may have applications even beyond wound healing, such as hormone regulation or neural health.

Graphite goes green

Graphite is a critical material with a big environmental footprint. Softer than other forms of carbon but still electrically conductive, it’s a necessary component in many electronics and batteries. However, mining graphite has devastating ecological consequences, and synthetic production relies on crude oil. A new, greener method of graphite production uses biochar, a carbon-rich byproduct of plant-based biofuel. This method generates the perfect hexagonal patterns of carbon needed for high-tech applications—a feat difficult to achieve with plant-based material. In a study published October 22 in Small, UChicago researchers led by Stuart Rowan of the Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering demonstrate the biographite’s viability in small electronics. They hope to refine their method so they can produce more graphite at lower cost in the future.

Transcription trouble

Transcription factors are proteins that help control gene expression by latching onto stretches of DNA with a set of molecular “claws.” These proteins can be recruited to help tumors spread, making them a tantalizing target for cancer researchers. In 2022 a group led by chemist Raymond Moellering devised a novel way to hinder transcription factors when they go rogue. The team developed a synthetic molecule that targets the same stretch of DNA as the transcription factor, blocking its path. In a new study, Moellering and his colleagues adapted this approach to XBP-1, a transcription factor involved in many cancers. The researchers tested their molecule in mice with breast cancer and found it both shrank the rodents’ tumors and reduced metastasis. The study, published August 30 in Nature Chemical Biology, offers fresh insight into how transcription factors function in cancer—and how they can be stopped.