Electronic pacemakers can treat electrical conduction disorders in hearts; however, they are invasive, bulky, and linked to increased incidence of infection at the tissue–device interface. Thus, researchers have looked to other more biocompatible methods for cardiac pacing or resynchronization, such as femtosecond infrared light pulsing, optogenetics, and polymer-based cardiac patches integrated with metal electrodes. Here we develop a biocompatible nongenetic approach for the optical modulation of cardiac cells and tissues. We demonstrate that a polymer–silicon nanowire composite mesh can be used to convert fast moving, low-radiance optical inputs into stimulatory signals in target cardiac cells. Our method allows for the stimulation of the cultured cardiomyocytes or ex vivo heart to beat at a higher target frequency.

Colloidal nanocrystals of metals, semiconductors, and other functional materials can self-assemble into long-range ordered crystalline and quasicrystalline phases, but insulating organic surface ligands prevent the development of collective electronic states in ordered nanocrystal assemblies. We reversibly self-assembled colloidal nanocrystals of gold, platinum, nickel, lead sulfide, and lead selenide with conductive inorganic ligands into supercrystals exhibiting optical and electronic properties consistent with strong electronic coupling between the constituent nanocrystals. The phase behavior of charge-stabilized nanocrystals can be rationalized and navigated with phase diagrams computed for particles interacting through short-range attractive potentials. By finely tuning interparticle interactions, the assembly was directed either through one-step nucleation or nonclassical two-step nucleation pathways. In the latter case, the nucleation was preceded by the formation of two metastable colloidal fluids.

The goal of this work is to determine the kinetic factors that govern isovalent cation exchange in III−V colloidal quantum dots using molten salts as the solvent and cation source. We focus on the reactions of InP + GaI 3 → In 1−x Ga x P and InAs + GaI 3 → In 1−x Ga x As to create technologically important ternary III−V phases. We find that the molten salt reaction medium causes the transformation of nearly spherical InP nanocrystals to tetrahedron-shaped In 1−x Ga x P nanocrystals. Furthermore, we determine that the activation energy for the cation exchange reaction is 0.9 eV for incorporation of Ga into InP and 1.2 eV for incorporation of Ga into InAs, both much lower than the measured values in bulk semiconductors. Next, we use powder XRD simulations to constrain our understanding of the structure of the In 1−x Ga x P nanocrystals. Together our results reveal several important features of molten salt-mediated cation exchange and provide guidance for future development of these materials.

Current techniques for intracellular electrical interrogation are limited by substrate-bound devices, technically demanding methods, or insufficient spatial resolution. In this work, we use freestanding silicon nanowires to achieve photoelectric stimulation in myofibroblasts with subcellular resolution. We demonstrate that myofibroblasts spontaneously internalize silicon nanowires and subsequently remain viable and capable of mitosis. We then show that stimulation of silicon nanowires at separate intracellular locations results in local calcium fluxes in subcellular regions. Moreover, nanowire–myofibroblast hybrids electrically couple with cardiomyocytes in coculture, and photostimulation of the nanowires increases the spontaneous activation rate in coupled cardiomyocytes. Finally, we demonstrate that this methodology can be extended to the interrogation of signaling in neuron–glia interactions using nanowire-containing oligodendrocytes.

Supramolecular self-assemblies of hydrophilic macromolecules functionalized with hydrophobic, structure-directing components have long been used for drug delivery. In these systems, loading of poorly soluble compounds is typically achieved through physical encapsulation during or after formation of the supramolecular assembly, resulting in low encapsulation efficiencies and limited control over release kinetics, which are predominately governed by diffusion and carrier degradation. To overcome these limitations, amphiphilic prodrugs that leverage a hydrophobic drug as both the therapeutic and structure-directing component can be used to create supramolecular materials with higher loading and controlled-release kinetics using biodegradable or enzymatically cleavable linkers. Here, we report the design, synthesis, and characterization of a library of supramolecular polymer prodrugs based on poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) and the proregenerative drug 1,4-dihydrophenonthrolin-4-one-3-carboxylic acid (DPCA). Structure–property relationships were elucidated through experimental characterization of prodrug behavior in both the wet and dry states using scattering techniques and electron microscopy and corroborated by coarse-grained modeling. Molecular architecture and the hydrophobic-to-hydrophilic ratio of PEG–DPCA conjugates strongly influenced their physical state in water, ranging from fully soluble to supramolecular spherical assemblies and nanofibers. Molecular design and supramolecular structure, in turn, were shown to dramatically alter hydrolytic and enzymatic release and cellular transport of DPCA. In addition to potentially expanding therapeutic options for DPCA through control of supramolecular assemblies, the design principles elaborated here may inform the development of other supramolecular prodrugs based on hydrophobic small-molecule compounds.