Nikolaidou Anna, Chiolerio Alessandro, Dehshibi Mohammad Mahdi, Adamatzky Andrew
Unconventional Computing Laboratory and Department of Architecture and Environment, University of the West of England, Bristol, BS16 1QY, United Kingdom.
Bioinspired Soft Robotics, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy.
ACS Omega. 2024 Jul 8;9(28):30308-30320. doi: 10.1021/acsomega.4c01227. eCollection 2024 Jul 16.
Kombucha is a type of tea that is fermented using yeast and bacteria. During this process, a film made of cellulose is produced. This film has unique properties such as biodegradability, flexibility, shape conformability, and ability to self-grow as well as be produced across customized scales. In our previous studies, we demonstrated that Kombucha mats exhibit electrical activity represented by spikes of the electrical potential. We propose using microbial fermentation as a method for functionalization to modulate the electroactive nature of Kombucha cellulose mats, where graphene and zeolite were used for the functionalization. We subjected the pure and functionalized Kombucha mats to mechanical stimulation by applying different weights and geometries. Our experiments demonstrated that Kombucha mats functionalized with graphene and zeolite exhibit memfractive properties and respond to load by producing distinctive spiking patterns. Our findings present incredible opportunities for the development of functionalized hybrid materials with sensing, computing, and memory capabilities. These materials can self-assemble and self-grow after they fuse their living and synthetic components. This study contributes to an emergent area of research on bioelectronic sensing and hybrid living materials, opening up exciting opportunities for use in smart wearables, diagnostics, health monitoring, and energy harvesting applications.
康普茶是一种通过酵母和细菌发酵制成的茶。在此过程中，会产生一种由纤维素制成的薄膜。这种薄膜具有独特的特性，如生物可降解性、柔韧性、形状适应性、自我生长能力以及能够在定制规模上生产。在我们之前的研究中，我们证明了康普茶垫表现出以电势尖峰为代表的电活动。我们提出使用微生物发酵作为一种功能化方法来调节康普茶纤维素垫的电活性，其中使用石墨烯和沸石进行功能化。我们通过施加不同的重量和几何形状对纯的和功能化的康普茶垫进行机械刺激。我们的实验表明，用石墨烯和沸石功能化的康普茶垫表现出忆阻特性，并通过产生独特的尖峰模式对负载做出响应。我们的研究结果为开发具有传感、计算和记忆能力的功能化混合材料提供了令人难以置信的机会。这些材料在融合其生物和合成成分后可以自我组装和自我生长。这项研究为生物电子传感和混合生物材料这一新兴研究领域做出了贡献，为智能可穿戴设备、诊断、健康监测和能量收集应用开辟了令人兴奋的机会。
