Synergistic Stiffening in Double-Fiber Networks

Many biological materials are composite structures, interpenetrating networks of different types of fibers. The composite nature of such networks leads to superior mechanical properties, but the origin of this mechanical synergism is still poorly understood. Here we study soft composite networks, made by mixing two self-assembling fiber-forming components. We find that the elastic moduli of the composite networks significantly exceed the sum of the moduli of the two individual networks. This mechanical enhancement is in agreement with recent simulations, where it was attributed to a suppression of non-affine deformation modes in the most rigid fiber network due to the reaction forces in the softer network. The increase in affinity also causes a loss of strain hardening and an increase in the critical stress and stain at which the network fails

Reversible Temperature-Switching of Hydrogel Stiffness of Coassembled, Silk-Collagen-Like Hydrogels

Recombinant protein polymers, which can combine different bioinspired self-assembly motifs in a well-defined block sequence, have large potential as building blocks for making complex, hierarchically structured materials. In this paper we demonstrate the stepwise formation of thermosensitive hydrogels by combination of two distinct, orthogonal self-assembly mechanisms. In the first step, fibers are coassembled from two recombinant protein polymers: (a) a symmetric silk-like block copolymer consisting of a central silk-like block flanked by two soluble random coil blocks and (b) an asymmetric silk-collagen-like block copolymer consisting of a central random-coil block flanked on one side by a silk-like block and on the other side a collagen-like block. In the second step, induced by cooling, the collagen-like blocks form triple helices and thereby cross-link the fibers, leading to hydrogels with a thermo-reversibly switchable stiffness. Our work demonstrates how complex self-assembled materials can be formed through careful control of the self-assembly pathway