Cartilage-Like Protein Hydrogels Engineered via Entanglement

By introducing chain entanglements into the hydrogel network made of folded elastomeric proteins, researchers were able to engineer highly stiff and tough protein hydrogels, which seamlessly combined mutually incompatible mechanical properties, including high stiffness, high toughness, fast recovery and ultrahigh compressive strength, effectively converting soft protein biomaterials into stiff and tough materials exhibiting mechanical properties close to those of cartilage.