Volume 3 Issue 11, November 2025

Bio-inspired path integration and neural mapping enable robots to navigate autonomously in global positioning system (GPS)-denied environments such as disaster zones, space and deep oceans.

Soft robots, such as silicone pneumatic networks or tendon actuated fingers, can be built at low cost and feature human-centered designs. The accessibility and real-life applications of soft robots make them ideal for educational outreach programs aimed at encouraging students to pursue biorobotics careers.

Base and prime editors extend the therapeutic scope of genome editing. Experience from CRISPR clinical trials offers a roadmap for their translation, from manufacturing and quality control to clinical trial design and regulatory assessment.

Bacteria can be engineered to metabolize inflammation by-products for the treatment of inflammation-mediated diseases. We created a spin-off company to translate bioengineered Escherichia coli Nissle into a live therapeutic product, navigating translational, regulatory and biotech mindset challenges. Here, I provide some generalizable insights into academic entrepreneurship.

An article in Nature Communications reports bioprinted trophoblast organoids as models of early placental development.

Living organisms surpass robots in durability and adaptability. This Review explores animal and plant energy-saving strategies to inspire resilient, low-energy robots and emphasizes the cost of transport as a key metric in relation to the durability of various movement modalities.

The historically independent evolution of bioinspired and biointegrated vision is increasingly showing a trend of convergence. This Review discusses each technological framework emphasizing visual devices that mimic the structures of the natural eyes and the information-processing capabilities of biological visual systems.

Organic afterglow luminescence imaging detects photons that are being slowly released from chemical defects after the light source is turned off, enabling autofluorescence-free in vivo imaging with a high signal-to-background ratio. This Review discusses the mechanisms underlying organic afterglow luminescence, outlining organic afterglow probe design and optimization and highlighting key biomedical applications.

Compared with traditional fluorophores, aggregation-induced emission luminogens (AIEgens) offer enhanced fluorescence in aggregated states, large Stokes shifts and excellent photostability. This Review discusses the biomedical applications of AIEgens, such as cell imaging, in vivo bioimaging, phototheranostics and in vitro diagnosis of human clinical samples, as well as their route to in vivo clinical translation.