Researchers at the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne have developed a method using densely packed emulsions to create biomimetic synthetic tissues, according to research published in Nature Materials. The technique uses droplet interface bilayers for compartmentalization, enabling high-throughput production and printing of synthetic tissue structures designed to mimic soft living tissues.
The study was authored by Y. Su and Yujia Zhang from EPFL's Laboratory for Bio-Iontronics (BION), which operates within the university's Institute of Electrical and Micro Engineering in Lausanne, Switzerland. The peer-reviewed research appeared on August 6, 2026, with the version of record catalogued under DOI 10.1038/s41563-026-02701-8.
The work builds upon a sequence of prior studies in droplet systems, interface bilayers, and bio-iontronics. These foundational references include research by Villar, Graham, and Bayley in Science in 2013, as well as more recent investigations published by Zhang and colleagues in Nature in 2023 and Science in 2024. Additional studies cited by the researchers include work in Nature Chemistry by Dupin and Simmel in 2019, Cell in 2025 by Chen and colleagues, Chemical Reviews in 2025 by Luo, Remy, and Zhang, and Chemical Society Reviews in 2026 by Wang and co-authors.
Zhang and Su reported no competing financial interests in the publication. Springer Nature published the research under access arrangements that include institutional licensing, a 30-day online access option priced at $32.99, an annual 12-issue subscription at $259.00, and single-article access pricing varying from $1.95 to $39.95 depending on document type.
