Assembling a True “Olympic Gel” From over 16 000 Combinatorial DNA Rings (Adv. Mater. 34/2026)

Olympic Gels This cover illustrates the molecular structure of an “Olympic gel” composed of mechanically interlocked plasmids. The ring-shaped DNA molecules can reversibly open and close via diversified lock-and-key domains, enabling controlled formation of mechanical bonds. The study shows that combinatorial synthetic biology can yield compositionally complex soft materials with exotic topological architectures and unique physical characteristics. More details can be found in the Research Article by Michael Lang, Elisha Krieg, and co-workers (DOI: 10.1002/adma.202520549).