Plant cell-based 4D engineered living materials
- 1Linkoping University
Abstract
Engineered living materials (ELMs) seek to bridge the gap between static engineered matter and dynamic biological systems. Photosynthetic ELMs have emerged as a promising route towards autonomous and sustainable material systems; however, they remain largely based on microorganisms or isolated organelles, whereas the potential of living plant cells as multifunctional, adaptive building blocks remains largely unexplored. Here we establish plant cells as a distinct chassis for engineered living materials and demonstrate that their intrinsic metabolic plasticity, cell-wall biochemistry and mechanics can be harnessed to create adaptive, evolvable and programmable materials. Using Arabidopsis thaliana suspension cells and printable pectin-alginate bioinks, we fabricate two- and three-dimensional living materials that support growth, metabolic plasticity and, long-term viability. Non-photosynthetic ELMs undergo light-induced metabolic reprogramming to acquire photosynthetic activity, demonstrating adaptive behaviour, while continuous cell growth dynamically remodels the mechanical properties of the material, enabling evolution of material properties through intrinsic biological processes. We further exploit endogenous cell wall peroxidases to catalyse the biofabrication of conducting polymers, enabling programmable acquisition of electrochemical functionality without genetic modification. By integrating living plant cells with auxetic and honeycomb architectures, we show that biological activity and structural design jointly determine emergent mechanical behaviour, revealing a principle of geometry-dependent biological reinforcement for living mechanical metamaterials. Centimetre-scale plant ELMs retain robust photosynthetic activity, with electron transport rates approaching those of native Arabidopsis tissues despite the absence of leaf architecture. Together, these findings establish plant cells as versatile building blocks for multifunctional living materials and lay the foundation for self-powered autonomous materials with potential applications in soft robotics, bioelectronics, and carbon capture.
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BibTeX
@misc{colaprico2026plant,
title = {{Plant cell-based 4D engineered living materials}},
author = {E. Colaprico and C. Musumeci and L. Bogdziewiez and D. Pagliara and A. Garcia Fleitas and G. Dufil and E. Magkouta and X. Jin and D. Mantione and A. Strand and S. Verger and E. Stavrinidou},
howpublished = {bioRxiv},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.64898/2026.10.19.760083},
url = {https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.10.19.760083v1},
note = {CC BY-ND},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Plant cell-based 4D engineered living materials
AU - E. Colaprico
AU - C. Musumeci
AU - L. Bogdziewiez
AU - D. Pagliara
AU - A. Garcia Fleitas
AU - G. Dufil
AU - E. Magkouta
AU - X. Jin
AU - D. Mantione
AU - A. Strand
AU - S. Verger
AU - E. Stavrinidou
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/19
PB - bioRxiv
DO - 10.64898/2026.10.19.760083
UR - https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.10.19.760083v1
AB - Engineered living materials (ELMs) seek to bridge the gap between static engineered matter and dynamic biological systems. Photosynthetic ELMs have emerged as a promising route towards autonomous and sustainable material systems; however, they remain largely based on microorganisms or isolated organelles, whereas the potential of living plant cells as multifunctional, adaptive building blocks remains largely unexplored. Here we establish plant cells as a distinct chassis for engineered living materials and demonstrate that their intrinsic metabolic plasticity, cell-wall biochemistry and mechanics can be harnessed to create adaptive, evolvable and programmable materials. Using Arabidopsis thaliana suspension cells and printable pectin-alginate bioinks, we fabricate two- and three-dimensional living materials that support growth, metabolic plasticity and, long-term viability. Non-photosynthetic ELMs undergo light-induced metabolic reprogramming to acquire photosynthetic activity, demonstrating adaptive behaviour, while continuous cell growth dynamically remodels the mechanical properties of the material, enabling evolution of material properties through intrinsic biological processes. We further exploit endogenous cell wall peroxidases to catalyse the biofabrication of conducting polymers, enabling programmable acquisition of electrochemical functionality without genetic modification. By integrating living plant cells with auxetic and honeycomb architectures, we show that biological activity and structural design jointly determine emergent mechanical behaviour, revealing a principle of geometry-dependent biological reinforcement for living mechanical metamaterials. Centimetre-scale plant ELMs retain robust photosynthetic activity, with electron transport rates approaching those of native Arabidopsis tissues despite the absence of leaf architecture. Together, these findings establish plant cells as versatile building blocks for multifunctional living materials and lay the foundation for self-powered autonomous materials with potential applications in soft robotics, bioelectronics, and carbon capture.
ER -