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A team from the Steinmetz lab developed a viral NanoSponge formulation that enables the noncovalent loading of agrochemicals but prevents premature release through metal–phenolic network (MPN) coatings. The NanoSponge platform represents a sustainable and effective strategy for precision farming, effectively addressing deep soil pests. Article Link

A team from the Nelson and Craig labs use a 1 : 1 substitution of cyclobutane-based mechanophores as scissile covalent crosslinks in 3D printed poly(methoxyethylacrylate) networks to enhance the material toughness without compromising stiffness. These crosslinkers increased the material's toughness in tensile and tearing tests without altering its stiffness or appearance, suggesting that mechanophores offer a promising route to toughen 3D printed elastomers. Article Link

A team from the Johnson, Olsen, Kulik, and Craig labs report a class of force-responsive molecules—tetrafunctional cyclobutanes (TCBs)—that enable the synthesis of single-network end-linked gels with substantially decreased or increased toughness, including unusually high toughness for dilute end-linked gels, with no other changes to network composition. TCB mechanophores and the corresponding concepts of stress-selective force-coupled reactivity and strand continuity offer design principles for tuning the toughness of simple yet commonly used single-network gels. Article Link

This Perspective from the MONET team highlights how new molecule-to-material relationships in polymer networks are simultaneously advancing the field of polymer chemistry and uncovering fundamental principles that extend beyond polymer systems, enriching our broader understanding of reactivity, structure, and bonding in complex materials. Article Link

A team from the Steinmetz and Craig labs assess recent advances in stability optimization to improve the functionality of virus-based nanoparticles and derived materials, considering engineering strategies that target the external and internal surfaces, as well as the interfaces between coat protein subunits. Article Link

A team from the Olsen and Craig labs introduce an addition to BigSMILES that represent topological interactions in macromolecules. This notation appends optional topological bond descriptors and associated indices, enabling the annotation of complex molecular architectures. The progression from BigSMILES to Topological BigSMILES highlights the potential for this framework to be used in representing broader classes of soft materials systems. Article Link

NSF MONET Senior Investigator Nicole Steinmetz has been inducted as a member of the European Academy of Sciences and Arts. The Academy is composed of leading scientists, artists, and practitioners of governance. They are dedicated to innovative research, interdisciplinary and transnational collaboration, and promoting scientific and societal progress. Congratulations Nicole!

A team from the Olsen lab presents a new coarse-grained fracture simulation approach, which models repulsive interactions within a network as a mean-field excluded volume (EV) potential and eliminates the need for imposed deformation along nontensile axes. Article Link

NSF MONET Senior Investigators Julia Kalow and Rebekka Klausen have been granted Brown Investigator Awards. The Brown Institute for Basic Sciences grants these awards to support bold ideas for curiosity-driven basic research. The awards consist of $2,000,000 each over five years to pursue new research avenues that are highly creative, and for which conventional sources of research funding may not be readily available. Award Announcement Congratulations Julia and Rebekka!

A team from the Olvera de la Cruz lab, with collaborators at UCSD, Duke, and Johns Hopkins, combine small-angle neutron and X-ray scattering and analytical measurements with extensive all-atom and coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations to examine the structure and dynamics of the polymer network within the crystalline framework of ferritin- Polymer-Integrated Protein Crystals (PIX). Article Link

A team from the Johnson, Olvera de la Cruz, Kulik, and Craig labs demonstrate that embedding a small fraction of force-sensitive mechanophores as cross-links into common polymers produces materials with substantially enhanced ballistic energy dissipation. This establishes a design principle for converting commodity polymers into impact-resilient materials and open directions at the intersection of polymer mechanochemistry and extreme-strain-rate material behavior. Article Link MIT News Item

A team from the Kulik lab reports the computational discovery of a new class of Cu2+ complex mechanophores comprising two tridentate scorpionate ligands that reversibly switch from octahedral to square-planar coordination under mechanical load. This work establishes coordination switching as a useful design strategy for mechanophores and demonstrates how high-throughput ab initio screening and ML can enable data-driven discovery of force-responsive polymer building blocks. Article Link