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Enzymatically Polymerized Glycolated Conductive Polymers as Soft Electrodes for Neural Bioelectronic Interfaces
Luigi Fabiano1,2, Tobias Abrahamsson1, Ludovico Aloisio1
1Laboratory of Organic Electronics, Department of Science and Technology, Linköping University, 60174 Norrköping, Sweden.
ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces
|July 2, 2026
Summary
Adding hydrophilic side chains to bis-ethylenedioxythiophene-thiophene (ETE)-based polymers enhances their biocompatibility and swelling. However, this modification slightly reduces cycling stability in organic electrochemical transistors, presenting design trade-offs for bioelectronic interfaces.
Area of Science:
- Organic bioelectronics
- Conducting polymers
- Biomaterials
Background:
- Organic bioelectronics requires materials that bridge ionic biological systems and electronic devices.
- Conducting polymers offer mixed ionic-electronic conductivity, flexibility, and tunability.
- Bis-ethylenedioxythiophene-thiophene (ETE)-based polymers are synthesized enzymatically for seamless biological integration.
Purpose of the Study:
- Investigate the impact of hydrophilic side-chain engineering on ETE-based polymer properties.
- Compare a standard ETE polymer with one featuring a triethylene glycol side chain.
- Understand how side-chain modifications affect physicochemical, electrochemical, and biological performance.
Main Methods:
- Synthesized and characterized two ETE-based polymers differing in side-chain structure.
- Utilized electrochemical quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring (EQCM-D).
- Employed in-operando UV-vis spectroscopy and electrochemical atomic force microscopy (EC-AFM).
Main Results:
- Glycolation increased film hydration and surface roughness without altering elastic modulus.
- The glycolated polymer showed enhanced cytocompatibility and cell adhesion in a neuronal model.
- Enhanced electrochemically induced swelling was observed in the glycolated polymer.
- Organic electrochemical transistors (OECTs) using both polymers showed comparable performance, with slightly reduced stability for the glycolated version.
Conclusions:
- Side-chain glycolation in ETE-based polymers presents complex trade-offs.
- Enhanced hydration, roughness, and biocompatibility are achieved.
- Slightly reduced cycling stability in OECTs necessitates careful design considerations.
- Provides guidelines for engineering enzymatically synthesized conducting polymers for bioelectronic applications.
