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The melanoidin from soluble coffee is utilized as a material‐independent, multipurpose coating material. Instantaneous complexation of the coffee melanoidin (CM) with ferric ion (Fe3+) leads to surface‐adhesive aggregates, inducing sequential film deposition. Various chemical groups of the CM also allow for post‐functionalizations of the CM film, including surface‐initiated, ring‐opening polymerization and bioinspired silicification. In addition, the CM‐based coating is applied to single‐cell nanoencapsulation with a strategy of biphasic interfacial reactions. The method is highly cytocompatible (viability >98%), and the CM shell is cytoprotective against lytic enzymes. The coated cells inherit the characterictics of the CM, such as post‐functionalizability and antioxidant property. Considering that surface‐coating technologies with cytocompatible natural polymers have widely been used for engineering bioentities, the CM‐based coating strategy would provide an advanced option for biomedical applications.

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The eggshell membrane is one of the easily obtainable natural biomaterials, but has been neglected in the biomaterial community, compared with marine biomaterials and discarded as a food waste. In this work, we utilized the ESM hydrolysate (ESMH), which was obtained by the enzymochemical method, as a bioactive functional material for interfacial bioengineering, exemplified by thickness-tunable, layer-by-layer (LbL) nanocoating with the Fe­(III)-tannic acid (TA) complex. [Fe­(III)-TA/ESMH] LbL films, ending with the ESMH layer, showed great cytocompatiblility with HeLa cells and even primary hippocampal neuron cells. More importantly, the films were found to be neurochemically active, inducing the acceleration of neurite outgrowth for the long-term neuron culture. We believe that the ability for building cytocompatible ESMH films in a thickness-tunable manner would be applicable to a broad range of different nanomaterials in shape and size and would be utilized with multimodal functionalities for biomedical applications, such as bioencapsulation, theranostics, and regenerative medicine.

A coating must remain intact to perform its inherent functions on a surface, and often functional organic coatings fail due to deterioration because of their intrinsic vulnerabilities. In this work, we present a biomimetic material based on a glass sponge to provide a robust silica composite nanocoating with an antifog effect. The silica composite nanocoating was constructed with a binary film structure consisting of (1) a Fe(III)−tannic acid (TA) nanofilm for adhesion to coat the substrates and (2) a SiO 2 layer to enhance the durability of the coating. Due to the universal coating property of Fe(III)−TA nanofilms, we demonstrated that the silica composite nanocoating was effective regardless of the substrate. By layer-by-layer assembly of the silica composite, it is possible to precisely control the nanocoating thickness. The superhydrophilic nature of the SiO 2 layer showed an exceptional antifog effect that remained intact against multiple deteriorative conditions, including acid treatment, peroxide degradation, sudden temperature change, severe heat conduction, and oil contamination. In addition, the silica composite nanocoating is scalable for surfaces of different shapes and sizes with the aid of a spray-assisted deposition technique. The bioinspired, multicomposite nanocoating strategy herein contributes to the improvement of organic coatings for uses in applications to tackle current technological problems.

Single‐cell nanoencapsulation (SCNE) demands cytocompatible materials and processes to ensure the maintenance of cell viability and prefers the degradation‐on‐demand and postfunctionalization of the cytoprotective shells. Although the layer‐by‐layer (LbL) method has intensively been used for SCNE, there have been few reports on the cytocompatible LbL shells that are postfunctionalizable under mild conditions. Herein, the use of nature‐derived eggshell membrane hydrolysate (ESMH) as a counter component to tannic acid (TA) for hydrogen bonding‐based LbL shell formation on Saccharomyces cerevisiae is proposed. In addition to the great cytocompatibility of the LbL process and protective capability of the ESMH/TA shell (e.g., 18‐fold increase in survival against Cu2+), the shell is postfunctionalizable, benefitting from the presence of various functional groups in the ESMH, as demonstrated by reactions with N‐hydroxysuccinimide‐ or maleimide‐conjugated fluorescent probes and bioinspired silicification. This work suggests that ESMH would be an advanced biomaterial for chemically interfacing with living cells in a controlled fashion.

Root-knot nematodes (Meloidogyne spp.) are plant parasites that cause serious economic damage by infecting over 2,000 plant species globally [1]. Second-stage juveniles of Meloidogyne spp. invade plant roots and produce galls, thereby disturbing the uptake of nutrients and water by the host plants [2]. The above-ground symptoms of host plants infected by Meloidogyne spp. may be similar to those observed in plants with root damage. As specific root-knot symptoms are not apparent above ground, it is difficult to determine the exact moment of outbreak in order to implement crop protection measures. With outdated nematode control methods, host plants could experience heavy root system damage, and this results in economic losses of over $100 billion worldwide [3].Among more than 100 Meloidogyne spp., four major species, namely, M. incognita, M. arenaria, M. javanica, and M. hapla are the most common species in agriculture in Korea [4]. These nematodes are problematic owing to their broad host range, high reproductivity, and endoparasitic characteristics [5,6]. Moreover, continuous cultivation of horticultural crops, such as oriental melon, red pepper, and tomato, makes it difficult to control these nematode species in greenhouses [4,7,8].Chemical nematicides are preferred for nematode control. Although promising as control agents, some have been banned over environmental concerns, residual issues, and toxicity to humans and livestock. Alternative control methods using antagonistic microorganisms such as fungi and bacteria are being investigated [9][10][11]. As antagonistic microorganisms are not sufficiently efficacious on their own [12], it is necessary to develop a strategy that integrates different control methods to improve the control efficacy.Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) play a key role in the production of various fermented meat, fish, and dairy products, and kimchi (Korean traditional fermented cabbage) [13]. They are gram-positive bacteria and are divided into two metabolic categories, homofermentative and heterofermentative, based on their metabolism. In general, homofermentative LAB, such as Lactiplantibacillus spp., Lactococcus spp., and Pediococcus spp., are more acid tolerant than heterofermentative LAB, including Leuconostoc spp. and Weissella spp. The antagonistic activities of homofermentative LAB have been reported against phytopathogenic microorganisms and root-knot nematodes, via the production of organic acids in carbohydrate fermentation [11,14,15].Copper sulfate has been found to be directly toxic to root-knot nematodes in a laboratory test, and it indirectly Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) exert antagonistic activity against root-knot nematodes, mainly by producing organic acids via carbohydrate fermentation. However, they have not yet been used for root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne incognita) control owing to a lack of economic feasibility and effectiveness. In this study, we aimed to isolate organic acid-producing LAB from kimchi (Korean traditional fermented cabbage) and evaluated their nematicidal a...

Resveratrol (3,4', is beneficial to human health due to its diverse biological activities including its anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidative effects as confirmed by pharmacokinetic tests. Despite these clinical merits, resveratrol's limited hydrosolubility and chemical vulnerability remain challenging with regard to developing a controlled delivery system with enhanced bioavailability. In this work, we report a resveratrol-β-lactoglobulin (R-BLG) composite nanocoating through a layer-by-layer assembly with Fe(III)-tannic acid nanofilms. The R-BLG composite nanocoating can be formed in planar and particulate substrates, showing excellent film stability under a broad range of pH values and against enzymatic digestion during a weeklong incubation. We envision that the proteinaceous nanocoating herein could be combined with existing pharmaceutical carrier materials (e. g., microcapsules and nanoparticles) to realize advanced drug delivery systems with an expanded repertoire of hydrophobic drugs.