Sustainable DNA-polysaccharide hydrogels as recyclable bioplastics

Yujie Ke, Kai Lan, Jing Yi Wong, Hongfang Lu, Shujun Gao, Keunhyuk Ryu, Feng Chen, Wei Wei Loh, Zhili Dong, Jason Y. C. Lim, Zhaogang Dong, Xi Chen (), Itamar Willner () and Yuwei Hu ()
Additional contact information
Yujie Ke: Innovis #08-03
Kai Lan: 2820 Faucette Drive
Jing Yi Wong: Innovis #08-03
Hongfang Lu: Innovis #08-03
Shujun Gao: 11 Jln Tan Tock Seng
Keunhyuk Ryu: Nanyang Technological University
Feng Chen: Innovis #08-03
Wei Wei Loh: Innovis #08-03
Zhili Dong: Nanyang Technological University
Jason Y. C. Lim: Innovis #08-03
Zhaogang Dong: Innovis #08-03
Xi Chen: Tuen Mun
Itamar Willner: The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Yuwei Hu: Innovis #08-03

Nature Communications, 2025, vol. 16, issue 1, 1-12

Abstract: Abstract Traditional petrochemical-derived plastics are challenging to recycle and degrade, and the existing (re)process methods are organic solvent-based and/or energy-intensive, resulting in significant environmental contamination and greenhouse gas emissions. This study presents a sustainable bioplastic material characterized by multi-closed-loop recyclability and water (re)processability. The bioplastics are derived from abundant polysaccharide sources of dextran, alginic acid, carboxymethyl cellulose, and DNA of plant and living organism waste. The process involves chemical oxidation of polysaccharides to produce aldehyde-functionalized derivatives, which subsequently form reversible imine covalent bonds with amine groups in DNA. This reaction yields water-processable polysaccharide/DNA crosslinked hydrogels, serving as raw materials for producing sustainable bioplastics. The bioplastic products exhibit (bio)degradability and recyclability, enabling aqueous recovery of the hydrogel constituents through plastic hydrolysis and the natural biodegradability of DNA and polysaccharides. These products demonstrate excellent resistance to organic solvents, self-healing, scalability, and effective processing down to nanometer scales, underscoring their potential for broad and versatile applications. The work provides potential pathways for advancing sustainable and environmentally friendly bioplastic materials.

Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-62682-1 Abstract (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:nat:natcom:v:16:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-025-62682-1

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
https://www.nature.com/ncomms/

DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-62682-1

Access Statistics for this article

Nature Communications is currently edited by Nathalie Le Bot, Enda Bergin and Fiona Gillespie

More articles in Nature Communications from Nature
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().