Volume 3 Issue 1, January 2025

The extracellular matrix remains under-recognized as a sex-dependent entity. Designing culture environments that account for sex as a biological variable requires considering not only cellular sex, but also the usage of sex-specific scaffolds to create a holistically sex-accurate platform.

The widespread use and translation of engineered in vitro tissues, such as organoids, organ-on-chip devices and microphysiological models, will require designs that can be preserved by cryopreservation. Here, we outline the factors that affect their cryopreservation, highlighting the challenges that remain to be addressed.

Commercializing cultured meat requires cost reduction and quality improvement. Microbial cell factories can produce cost-effective and high-quality raw materials for cultured meat production.

Recognition of life as a dynamic, non-equilibrium and evolvable process suggests that the realization of synthetic life could be achieved by the in vitro integration of metabolic and evolutionary processes.

Stem cell-based embryo models can recapitulate developmental processes such as tissue patterning and morphogenetic events from pre-implantation to early organogenesis. This Review discusses how bioengineering approaches can be used to generate more efficient, controllable, reproducible and scalable embryo models.

Microbial bioelectronic sensors offer rapid and cost-effective chemical monitoring by generating electrical signals. However, deploying such sensors in the field remains challenging. This Review proposes interdisciplinary solutions and integrates advances in chassis selection, genetic modification, material engineering and device fabrication.

Information on clinical trial progress and outcomes of implanted brain–computer interfaces (iBCIs) remains limited. This Review provides a comprehensive survey of all identified clinical trials of iBCIs for communication, motor control or restoration of tactile perception conducted from the first chronic implantation in 1998 to December 2023.

Extracellular vesicles are being explored for various biomedical applications, but face challenges with regard to isolation, characterization and manufacturing. This Review delineates the physico-chemical landscape of extracellular vesicles to identify the distinct challenges associated with the manufacturing and isolation of extracellular vesicles from biofluids and suggests opportunities to address them.

The transplantation of encapsulated islets may provide a cure for type 1 diabetes. This Review outlines how islet-encapsulation devices and materials can be designed to protect islets from the host immune system, allow sufficient nutrient and oxygen supply, and enable revascularization as well as insulin release.