Driven by growing demand for green, sustainable, and high-performance materials in food packaging and biomedical fields, the utilization of natural bio-resources like collagen is advancing from traditional single-material uses toward multi-component, functionalized material systems. Given the distinct chemical compositions, structural scales, and interfacial properties of varied biomass components, enhancing interfacial synergy is key to fully leveraging their functional benefits and engineering high-performance, multi-component bio-based materials.

Through industry-university-research collaboration, Guangxi Shenguan Collagen Biological Group Co., Ltd. and Professor Xie Shangxian’s team at Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST) have advanced joint research in basic collagen science, multi-component biomaterial design, and high-value applications. Their latest findings were recently published in Nature Sustainability. Using collagen as a core raw material, the study integrates Ganoderma mycelia and plant-derived anthocyanins to construct a collagen–mycelium–anthocyanin system. By using natural small molecules to modulate heterogeneous interfaces among diverse biological components, the team achieved effective interfacial reorganization and structural synergy. The design strategy was also successfully validated across other macromolecular and small-molecule systems, demonstrating strong potential for broader application.

In performance and application testing, the resulting two-dimensional composite film demonstrated strong mechanical properties and mass-transfer barrier capabilities. Leveraging the intrinsic antioxidant, antibacterial, and pH-responsive traits of anthocyanins and mycelia, the film achieved active food preservation alongside visual freshness monitoring. Furthermore, applying this interface design principle to a three-dimensional porous aerogel produced materials with high liquid absorption and blood retention. In in vitro tests, the aerogel showed low hemolysis rates and rapid pro-coagulant responses, highlighting its strong potential across diverse biomaterial applications. By tuning interfacial interactions between collagen and varied natural biological components, this work provides a versatile technical foundation for custom-engineered structural and functional biomaterials.

This achievement represents a major milestone in the industry-university-research collaboration between Shenguan Group and Professor Xie Shangxian’s team at Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST), spanning basic collagen science, material design, and application. The study advances collagen utilization from single-material applications toward synergistic, multi-source natural biomass engineering. By establishing a scientific foundation and technical roadmap to transition raw collagen into high-performance, functionalized materials, this research builds strategic technical reserves for future product development and high-value applications across food packaging, health, and biomedical sectors.

Article Information:
AlitenaiTunuhe, Ze Zheng, Ke Zhu, Yiquan Zhao, Fuying Ma, Yadi Gu, Junqi Sha, Hongbo Yu, Yaxian Zhou, Shangxian Xie, Small-molecule-bound biopolymer networks for sustainable multifunctional composites. Nature Sustainability (2026).

Article link：Small-molecule-bound biopolymer networks for sustainable multifunctional composites | Nature Sustainability