Themed collection Sustainable Development Goal 3: Good Health and Well-Being

Biomaterials made of polymers has shown significant progress for periodontal regeneration and the treatment of periodontitis due to their superior properties such as controlled bioactive molecule delivery and 3D bioprintability.

Surfaces act as reservoirs for the proliferation of microorganisms, including bacteria and viruses, that can be transmitted to individuals who come into contact with them.

The pharmaceuticals industry has played an important role in developing medicines for improving health and quality of life in treating humans and animals around the world.

Diabetes when left untreated can lead to various complications in the eye – at its most severe, leading to vision loss. Injectable thermogels provide a minimally-invasive platform that facilitates the treatment and recovery of these patients.

Enhancing our comprehension of the structural influences alongside characterization tools for thermoresponsive polymers will pave the way to design and deploy more advanced biomaterials, holding promise for future applications in public health.

This paper reviewed the research progress of 3D printing in wearable sensors based on conductive hydrogels, with an emphasis on classification of conductive hydrogels, the mechanisms of wearable sensors and applications of 3D printing methods.

This article uses innovative UV-curable acrylate elastomer with AgNWs to develop flexible strain sensors for wrist movement monitoring.

Flame-made rare-earth nanostructured coatings are deposited in situ on catheter-mimicking surfaces and subsequently rendered superhydrophobic in a controlled way by hydrocarbon adsorption, preventing the growth of uropathogenic E. coli biofilms.

Photocrosslinking poly(ethylene-co-acrylic acids) on textile surfaces gives hydrophilic antimicrobial coatings which function by contact lysis enhanced with green light.

Polydiacetylene/copolymer paper sensors were developed to detect five breath volatile organic compounds indicative of early lung cancer, including ethylbenzene, 2-butanone, hexanal, 2-ethylhexanol, and undecane.

Two metal–organic frameworks, DUT-4(Al) and MIL-100(Fe), were explored as sensitive layers deposited at the surface of QCM transducers for the detection of α-pinene, a terpenic volatile organic compound encountered in indoor air at a trace level.

PDMS/HT outer membrane-coated CGM sensors can extend the in vivo lifetime to 28 days.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic context, the demand for new materials with antiviral and antibacterial properties has been increasing in recent years following an awareness to help prevent future outbreaks.

Propene-bridged cyanurate tetramers (PBCTs) nested onto 2D nanosheets (CNHs) exhibit antibacterial activity by disrupting bacterial cell wall synthesis.

We developed probiotic bacteria-loaded, alginate-based nanofibers via electrospinning for the targeted delivery of probiotics into the intestines.

Cross-linked polymer nanogels with positively charged sulfonium groups were designed and synthesized. After characterization, the gene delivery propensity of these materials was evaluated, which is likely hampered by limited cell entry.

Efficient virus adsorption and selective elution of a nonenveloped virus are demonstrated by using cationic polymer brushes. These materials may have potential for passive sampling in wastewater-based epidemiology.

Uniform trehalose nanogels improve stability and solubility of glucagon in aqueous solution, particularly useful for long term storage at cold temperatures. Additionally, the glucagon nanogels were nontoxic, nonhemolytic, and efficacious in vitro.

Poly(alkyl acrylate)-based adhesives are used as coatings for stainless-steel filters to enhance microplastic removal efficiencies via adsorption.

The problem of antibiotic resistance has raised serious concerns globally. Herein, we report the synthesis of new chitosan-saccharide conjugates to eradicate Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms.

Combination therapies offer potential solutions to the growing threats of antimicrobial resistance. We describe polymer delivery materials for Quorum Sensing Inhibitors used in combination with ciprofloxacin to enhance potency in bacterial biofilms.

Removal of emerging pollutants from wastewater and growth of plants by treated water using waste biomass-derived carbonaceous aerogel.

In this work, by using drugs as a catalyst coupled with a polymerization-induced self-assembly process, we synthesise drug-polymer particles in one pot compared to a standard stepwise process.

A stepwise synthetic method is reported for the synthesis of multifunctional, magnetic and luminescent composites with silica-coated Fe₃O₄ as the core and Ce³⁺ sensitized Tb³⁺ doped GdPO₄ embedded in carboxymethylcellulose.

A low-temperature hydrothermal method for synthesis of unique parallelogram morphology based NiFe₂O₄ and NiFe₂O₄/reduced graphene oxide nanocomposite for fabricating biosensors for dopamine monitoring.

Silver(I) and copper(II) sulfonyldibenzoate coordination polymers were assembled and applied as bioactive dopants for hybrid biopolymer films with remarkable antibacterial and biofilm inhibition activity.

Electrochemically-driven terpolymer, P(EDOT-co-EDOTSAc-co-EDOTEG), offers rapid and controllable connexin43 antisense conjugation and release.

Hydrogel microplates are formed through photoinitiated thiol–ene chemistry in a soft-lithography process, leading to enzyme responsive drug nanoparticle release to MMP-2/9 expressing brain cancer cell line U87-MG.

Multiple architectural pathways are developed towards self-healable responsive polymer nanocomposites using CNT reinforcement and multiple dynamic chemistries. These materials contribute to applications in smart lighting systems and custom resistors.