Design principles for adaptive and evolving engineered living materials

Engineered living materials (ELMs) combine living cells, typically microorganisms, such as bacteria, yeasts, or filamentous fungi, with structural carrier matrices to form systems capable of sensing, growth, and self-repair. Most current designs emphasize programming the microbes to render otherwise static materials functional. A less explored dimension is leveraging reciprocal microbial-material interactions themselves to engineer adaptive and evolving living materials as integrated systems. Achieving such dynamic behavior requires understanding how support matrices influence microbial behavior and how cells, in turn, reshape material properties over time. This review outlines key modes of cell-material interactions as a framework for expanding the functional toolbox of ELMs and for creating sustainable and programmable materials that respond to their environments and evolve.