Counterfeit medicines are a healthcare security problem, posing not only a direct threat to patient safety and public health but also causing heavy economic losses. Current anticounterfeiting methods are limited due to the toxicity of the constituent materials and the focus of secondary packaging level protections. We introduce an edible, imperceptible, and scalable matrix code of information representation and data storage for pharmaceutical products. This matrix code is digestible as it is composed of silk fibroin genetically encoded with fluorescent proteins produced by ecofriendly, sustainable silkworm farming. Three distinct fluorescence emission colors are incorporated into a multidimensional parameter space with a variable encoding capacity in a format of matrix arrays. This code is smartphone-readable to extract a digitized security key augmented by a deep neural network for overcoming fabrication imperfections and a cryptographic hash function for enhanced security. The biocompatibility, photostability, thermal stability, long-term reliability, and low bit error ratio of the code support the immediate feasibility for dosage-level anticounterfeit measures and authentication features. The edible code affixed to each medicine can serve as serialization, track and trace, and authentication at the dosage level, empowering every patient to play a role in combating illicit pharmaceuticals.

We report 37 mitochondrial genome (mitogenome) sequences of Bombyx mori strains (Lepidoptera: Bombycidae) and four of B. mandarina individuals, each preserved and collected, respectively, in South Korea. These mitogenome sequences combined with 45 public data showed a substantial genetic reduction in B. mori strains compared to the presumed ancestor B. mandarina, with the highest diversity detected in the Chinese origin B. mori. Chinese B. mandarina were divided into northern and southern groups, concordant to the Qinling–Huaihe line, and the northern group was placed as an immediate progenitor of monophyletic B. mori strains in phylogenetic analyses, as has previously been detected. However, one individual that was in close proximity to the south Qinling–Huaihe line was exceptional, belonging to the northern group. The enigmatic South Korean population of B. mandarina, which has often been regarded as a closer genetic group to Japan, was most similar to the northern Chinese group, evidencing substantial gene flow between the two regions. Although a substantial genetic divergence is present between B. mandarina in southern China and Japan, a highly supported sister relationship between the two regional populations may suggest the potential origin of Japanese B. mandarina from southern China instead of the Korean peninsula.

Antheraea yamamai, also known as the Japanese oak silk moth, is a wild species of silk moth. Silk produced by A. yamamai, referred to as tensan silk, shows different characteristics such as thickness, compressive elasticity, and chemical resistance compared with common silk produced from the domesticated silkworm, Bombyx mori. Its unique characteristics have led to its use in many research fields including biotechnology and medical science, and the scientific as well as economic importance of the wild silk moth continues to gradually increase. However, no genomic information for the wild silk moth, including A. yamamai, is currently available. In order to construct the A. yamamai genome, a total of 147G base pairs using Illumina and Pacbio sequencing platforms were generated, providing 210-fold coverage based on the 700-Mb estimated genome size of A. yamamai. The assembled genome of A. yamamai was 656 Mb (>2 kb) with 3675 scaffolds, and the N50 length of assembly was 739 Kb with a 34.07% GC ratio. Identified repeat elements covered 37.33% of the total genome, and the completeness of the constructed genome assembly was estimated to be 96.7% by Benchmarking Universal Single-Copy Orthologs v2 analysis. A total of 15 481 genes were identified using Evidence Modeler based on the gene prediction results obtained from 3 different methods (ab initio, RNA-seq-based, known-gene-based) and manual curation. Here we present the genome sequence of A. yamamai, the first genome sequence of the wild silk moth. These results provide valuable genomic information, which will help enrich our understanding of the molecular mechanisms relating to not only specific phenotypes such as wild silk itself but also the genomic evolution of Saturniidae.

Waste from non-degradable packaging materials poses a serious environmental risk and has led to interest in developing sustainable bio-based packaging materials. Sustainable packaging materials have been made from diverse naturally derived materials such as bamboo, sugarcane, and corn starch. In this study, we made a sustainable packaging film using chitosan extracted from the biomass of yellow mealworm (Tenebrio molitor) shell waste. The extracted chitosan was used to create films, cross-linked with citric acid (CA) and with the addition of glycerol to impart flexibility, using the solvent casting method. The successful cross-linking was evaluated using Fourier-Transform Infrared (FTIR) analysis. The CA cross-linked mealworm chitosan (CAMC) films exhibited improved water resistance with moisture content reduced from 19.9 to 14.5%. Improved barrier properties were also noted, with a 28.7% and 10.2% decrease in vapor permeability and vapor transmission rate, respectively. Bananas were selected for food preservation, and significant changes were observed over a duration of 10 days. Compared to the control sample, bananas packaged in CAMC pouches exhibited a lesser loss in weight because of excellent barrier properties against water vapor. Moreover, the quality and texture of bananas packaged in CAMC pouch remained intact over the duration of the experiment. This indicates that adding citric acid and glycerol to the chitosan structure holds promise for effective food wrapping and contributes to the enhancement of banana shelf life. Through this study, we concluded that chitosan film derived from mealworm biomass has potential as a valuable resource for sustainable packaging solutions, promoting the adoption of environmentally friendly practices in the food industry.

This study presents the fabrication of a sustainable flexible humidity sensor utilizing chitosan derived from mealworm biomass as the primary sensing material. The chitosan-based humidity sensor was fabricated by casting chitosan and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) films with interdigitated copper electrodes, forming a laminate composite suitable for real-time, resistive-type humidity detection. Comprehensive characterization of the chitosan film was performed using Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, contact angle measurements, and tensile testing, which confirmed its chemical structure, wettability, and mechanical stability. The developed sensor exhibited a broad range of measurements from 6% to 97% relative humidity (RH), a high sensitivity of 2.43 kΩ/%RH, and a rapid response time of 18.22 s with a corresponding recovery time of 22.39 s. Moreover, the chitosan-based humidity sensor also demonstrated high selectivity for water vapor when tested against various volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The superior performance of the sensor is attributed to the structural properties of chitosan, particularly its ability to form reversible hydrogen bonds with water molecules. This mechanism was further elucidated through molecular dynamics simulations, revealing that the conductivity in the sensor is modulated by proton mobility, which operates via the Grotthuss mechanism under high-humidity and the packed-acid mechanism under low-humidity conditions. Additionally, the chitosan-based humidity sensor was further seamlessly integrated into an Internet of Things (IoT) framework, enabling wireless humidity monitoring and real-time data visualization on a mobile device. Comparative analysis with existing polymer-based resistive-type sensors further highlighted the superior sensing range, rapid dynamic response, and environmental sustainability of the developed sensor. This eco-friendly, biomass-derived, eco-friendly sensor shows potential for applications in environmental monitoring, smart agriculture, and industrial process control.

Silk has attracted the attention of researchers as a biomedical and cosmetic material because of its good biocompatibility and cytocompatibility. Silk is produced from the cocoons of silkworms, which have various strains. In this study, silkworm cocoons and silk fibroins (SFs) were obtained from ten silkworm strains, and their structural characteristics and properties were examined. The morphological structure of the cocoons depended on the silkworm strains. The degumming ratio of silk ranged from 22.8% to 28% depending on the silkworm strains. The highest and lowest solution viscosities of SF were shown by 9671 and 9153, respectively, showing a 12-fold difference. The silkworm strains of 9671, KJ5, and I-NOVI showed a two-fold higher work of ruptures for the regenerated SF film than 181 and 2203, indicating that the silkworm strains considerably influence the mechanical properties of the regenerated SF film. Regardless of the silkworm strain, all silkworm cocoons showed good cell viability, making them suitable candidates for advanced functional biomaterials.