BPS2026 – Biophysical insights into seed mucilage enable responsive biohybrid material design to augment seed survival

Scaling reforestation efforts requires new technologies that improve seed establishment in variable soils, and plant-derived polymers offer a sustainable way to create responsive materials that will help seeds adapt to unpredictable environments. Mucilage, a polysaccharide hydrogel secreted by myxospermous seeds, exemplifies how plants optimize responses to environmental forces through hydration, adhesion, and anchorage, thereby enhancing seed survival under stress. Here, we probed the biophysical interactions underlying mucilage attachment to soil-like substrates. Using high-resolution fluorescence and scanning electron microscopy, together with functional assays, we tested the dependence of mucilage anchorage to specific surfaces on cooperative electrostatic, hydrophobic, and calcium-mediated cross-linking interactions, with salt, nonionic detergent, and calcium chelation selectively disrupting these mechanisms. Additionally, we found that combining mucilage from multiple species further enhances adhesion when mucilage was transplanted to a non-myxospermous plant species, suggesting that compositional complementarity in mucilage types can be a strategy to optimize seed performance. Building on these insights, we aim to design fibrous coatings from mucilage and cellulose nanofibrils with tunable hydration, adhesion, and mechanical properties using electrospinning. This biohybrid approach leverages naturally evolved plant biomechanics to create adaptive, sustainable materials that can improve reforestation efforts, soil stabilization, and bio-inspired soft robotics, demonstrating how biophysical principles can drive environmentally beneficial materials innovations.