Cascade communication in disordered networks of enzyme-loaded microdroplets

Abstract

A network of aqueous emulsion droplets that exhibits programmed and directional chemical inter-droplet communication is described.

Responsive Janus droplets as modular sensory layers for the optical detection of bacteria

“…Next to morphological transitions, droplets can interact with their immediate chemical environment also by reversibly attaching to surfaces, multivalently binding to each other, or exchanging mass non-reciprocally, e.g., mediated by osmotic pressure differences. [ 46 , 85 , 86 ] In addition, Janus droplets are capable to undergo trigger-induced chemotactic motion that is mediated either by micellar solubilization of the dispersed phases or chemically evoked interfacial tension gradients within the surrounding continuous phase. [ 82 , 87 ] The speed and directionality of the overall droplet motion can be reversibly and controllably altered depending on the internal morphology of the droplets.…”

“…Janus emulsion droplets intrinsically represent a thermodynamically out-of-equilibrium material platform that continuously exchanges molecules with its environment. [ 83 – 85 ] Programmable regulation of their structural and functional changes to a wide variety of changes in their chemical environment could thus increase the complexity and specificity of these sensing systems and further allow to incorporate multiple gating and storage capacities. Multifunctional, adaptive droplet ensembles could controllably harness different energy gradients induced by multiple independent chemical binding events, thus paving the path towards the design of sensing platforms that release interpreted signals.…”

Controlled Fabrication of Carbon Nanotube Microspheres from Emulsion Templates: Exploring the Dynamics of Solvent Loss and Nanoparticle Assembly

“…Pre vious studies into the transport of substances alongside sponta neous emulsification have demonstrated that larger and more hydrophilic substances tend to partition preferentially in the parent droplet. [39,40] The encapsulated oxMWNTs have larger dimensions (≈1.5 µm in length), and possess hydrophilic func tional groups on their surface, so remain in the parent droplet.…”

Multicompartment calcium alginate microreactors to reduce substrate inhibition in enzyme cascade reactions

“…[10][11][12][13] In addition, higher local substrate and catalyst concentrations within the confined space of a microreactor can effectively tune reaction kinetics by overcoming unfavorable thermodynamics of the bulk environment. [14][15][16] Consequently, having fine control over the compartmentalization of active reaction centers within multiphasic microreactors constitutes an exciting avenue to impart materials with regulatory capabilities, a concept that has been elegantly designed and investigated in a variety of colloidal structures, including liposomes, 17,18 polymersomes, 19 vesosomes, 20,21 emulsions, 22,23 and compartmentalized hydrogels. [24][25][26] The optimization of a reaction's path and performance is determined by a combination of trade-off factors, including stability of the nano-or microreactor and its encapsulation efficiency, the confinement geometry, packing, and mass transfer across phase boundaries.…”