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Schröder-Turk GE. Quo vadis biophotonics? Wearing serendipity and slow science as a badge of pride, and embracing biology. Faraday Discuss 2020; 223:307-323. [PMID: 33034598 DOI: 10.1039/d0fd00108b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
This article is a reflection on the themes of the Faraday Discussion meeting on 'Biological and bio-inspired optics' held from 20 to 22 July 2020. It is a personal perspective on the nature of this field as a broad and interdisciplinary field that has led to a sound understanding of the material properties of biological nanostructured and optical materials. The article describes how the nature of the field and the themes of the conference are reflected in particular in work on the 3D bicontinuous biophotonic nanostructures known as single gyroids and in bicontinuous structures more broadly. Such single gyroid materials are found for example in the butterfly Thecla opisena, where the questions of biophotonic response, of bio-inspired optics, of the relationship between structure and function, and of the relationship between natural and synthetic realisations are closely interlinked. This multitude of facets of research on single gyroid structures reflects the beauty of the broader field of biophotonics, namely as a field that lives through embracing the serendipitous discovery of the biophotonic marvels that nature offers to us as seeds for in-depth analysis and understanding. The meandering nature of its discoveries, and the need to accept the slowness that comes from exploration of intellectually new or foreign territory, mean that the field shares some traits with biological evolution itself. Looking into the future, I consider that a closer engagement with living tissue and with the biological questions of function and formation, rather than with the materials science of biological materials, will help ensure the continuing great success of this field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gerd E Schröder-Turk
- Murdoch University, College of Science, Health, Engineering & Education, 90 South St, Murdoch, WA 6150, Australia.
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Mezzenga R, Seddon JM, Drummond CJ, Boyd BJ, Schröder-Turk GE, Sagalowicz L. Nature-Inspired Design and Application of Lipidic Lyotropic Liquid Crystals. ADVANCED MATERIALS (DEERFIELD BEACH, FLA.) 2019; 31:e1900818. [PMID: 31222858 DOI: 10.1002/adma.201900818] [Citation(s) in RCA: 90] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2019] [Revised: 04/16/2019] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
Abstract
Amphiphilic lipids aggregate in aqueous solution into a variety of structural arrangements. Among the plethora of ordered structures that have been reported, many have also been observed in nature. In addition, due to their unique morphologies, the hydrophilic and hydrophobic domains, very high internal interfacial surface area, and the multitude of possible order-order transitions depending on environmental changes, very promising applications have been developed for these systems in recent years. These include crystallization in inverse bicontinuous cubic phases for membrane protein structure determination, generation of advanced materials, sustained release of bioactive molecules, and control of chemical reactions. The outstanding diverse functionalities of lyotropic liquid crystalline phases found in nature and industry are closely related to the topology, including how their nanoscopic domains are organized. This leads to notable examples of correlation between structure and macroscopic properties, which is itself central to the performance of materials in general. The physical origin of the formation of the known classes of lipidic lyotropic liquid crystalline phases, their structure, and their occurrence in nature are described, and their application in materials science and engineering, biology, medical, and pharmaceutical products, and food science and technology are exemplified.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raffaele Mezzenga
- ETH Zurich Department of Health Sciences and Technology, Schmelzbergstrasse 9, LFO E23, Zurich, 8092, Switzerland
- ETH Zurich Department of Materials, Wolfgang-Pauli-Strasse 10, Zurich, 8093, Switzerland
| | - John M Seddon
- Chemistry Department, Imperial College London, MSRH, Wood Lane, London, W12 0BZ, UK
| | - Calum J Drummond
- School of Science, RMIT University, GPO Box 2476, Melbourne, Victoria, 3000, Australia
| | - Ben J Boyd
- Drug Delivery, Disposition and Dynamics and ARC Centre of Excellence in Convergent Bio-Nano Science and Technology, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University (Parkville Campus), 381 Royal Parade, Parkville, Victoria, 3052, Australia
| | - Gerd E Schröder-Turk
- College of Science, Health, Engineering and Education, Murdoch University, 90 South St, Murdoch, WA, 6150, Australia
- Department of Food Science, University of Copenhagen, Rolighedsvej 26, 1958, Frederiksberg C, Denmark
- Physical Chemistry, Center for Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Lund University, Lund, 22100, Sweden
| | - Laurent Sagalowicz
- Institute of Materials Science, Nestlé Research Center, CH-1000, Lausanne 26, Switzerland
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