journal article·2026-03-16Open access

Electrochemically synchronized, self-indicating iontophoretic patch with fully eco-degradable and self-powered system

Sung-Geun Choi, Se-Hun Kang, Soo-Hwan Lee, Geonjin Shin, Yu-Lim Lee, Aejin Kim, Joo-Hyeon Park, Sung-Woo Kim, Hyojin Lee, Seung-Kyun Kang

npj Flexible Electronics· Volume 10· Issue 1

Abstract

Iontophoretic transdermal patches enable controllable and noninvasive drug delivery but face a persistent trade-off among user-adaptive interaction, architectural simplicity, and sustainability. Simpler systems favor uniform operation, whereas feedback-enabled designs require additional electronics, increasing complexity, bulk, and environmental burden. Here, we present a self-powered, fully eco-degradable iontophoretic patch integrated with an electrochromic module, which electrochemically unifies drug delivery and user-facing indication within a single synchronized loop. Galvanic iontophoresis electrodes simultaneously drive iontophoretic transport with ionic current and actuate an on-patch electrochromic gauge with electrical current, converting cumulative charge-correlated dose into an electrochromic reaction propagation-based indication. This material–architecture co-design, based on thin, soft, and eco-degradable materials, enables compact and flexible patch-level implementation with system-level eco-degradability after use. Ex vivo porcine skin studies show a linear correlation between electrochromic propagation distance and delivered dose, and a psoriasis mouse model confirms therapeutic delivery with skin-compatible operation.
Source: openalex_inverted_index · Quality: baseline

Research context

OpenAlex topics: Advancements in Transdermal Drug Delivery · Pickering emulsions and particle stabilization · Advanced Sensor and Energy Harvesting Materials

SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.

References (91)

Show source-provided references
1. Prausnitz, M. R. & Langer, R. Transdermal drug delivery. Nat. Biotechnol. 26, 1261–1268 (2008).10.1038/nbt.1504 ↗
2. Kalia, Y. N., Naik, A., Garrison, J. & Guy, R. H. Iontophoretic drug delivery. Adv. Drug Deliv. Rev. 56, 619–658 (2004).10.1016/j.addr.2003.10.026 ↗
3. Zheng, H. et al. Reverse iontophoresis with the development of flexible electronics: a review. Biosens. Bioelectron. 223, 115036 (2023).10.1016/j.bios.2022.115036 ↗
4. Wang, G., Moriyama, N., Tottori, S. & Nishizawa, M. Recent advances in iontophoresis-assisted microneedle devices for transdermal biosensing and drug delivery. Mater. Today Bio. 31, 101504 (2025).10.1016/j.mtbio.2025.101504 ↗
5. Choi, S.-G. et al. Dual-phoretic wireless device for directionally oriented and carrier-free targeted drug delivery. Sci. Adv. 11, eads9269 (2025).10.1126/sciadv.ads9269 ↗
6. Zhou, Y. et al. An integrated Mg battery-powered iontophoresis patch for efficient and controllable transdermal drug delivery. Nat. Commun. 14, 297 (2023).10.1038/s41467-023-35990-7 ↗
7. Wang, Y. et al. Wearable plasmonic-metasurface sensor for noninvasive and universal molecular fingerprint detection on biointerfaces. Sci. Adv. 7, eabe4553 (2021).10.1126/sciadv.abe4553 ↗
8. Ogawa, Y. et al. Organic transdermal iontophoresis patch with built-in biofuel cell. Adv. Healthc. Mater. 4, 506–510 (2014).10.1002/adhm.201400457 ↗
9. Kusama, S. et al. Transdermal electroosmotic flow generated by a porous microneedle array patch. Nat. Commun. 12, 658 (2021).10.1038/s41467-021-20948-4 ↗
10. An, Y.-H. et al. Facilitated transdermal drug delivery using nanocarriers-embedded electroconductive hydrogel coupled with reverse electrodialysis-driven iontophoresis. ACS Nano 14, 4523–4535 (2020).10.1021/acsnano.0c00007 ↗
11. van den Brink, N. J. et al. Electrical impedance spectroscopy quantifies skin barrier function in organotypic in vitro epidermis models. J. Investig. Dermatol. 144, 2488–2500. e2484 (2024).10.1016/j.jid.2024.03.038 ↗
12. Dixit, N., Bali, V., Baboota, S., Ahuja, A. & Ali, J. Iontophoresis—an approach for controlled drug delivery: a review. Curr. Drug Deliv. 4, 1–10 (2007).
13. Kalia, Y. N. & Guy, R. H. Interaction between penetration enhancers and iontophoresis: effect on human skin impedance in vivo. J. Control. Release 44, 33–42 (1997).10.1016/S0168-3659(96)01500-3 ↗
14. Ahn, J. & Nam, Y. S. Assessing barrier function in psoriasis and cornification models of artificial skin using non-invasive impedance spectroscopy. Adv. Sci. 11, 2400111 (2024).10.1002/advs.202400111 ↗
15. Yang, C. et al. Intelligent wireless theranostic contact lens for electrical sensing and regulation of intraocular pressure. Nat. Commun. 13, 2556 (2022).10.1038/s41467-022-29860-x ↗
16. Hu, Y. et al. Prolonged monitoring and risk management of hyperuricemia using interference-resistant wearable bioelectronics. Device 3, 100753 (2025).10.1016/j.device.2025.100753 ↗
17. Ye, C. et al. A wearable aptamer nanobiosensor for non-invasive female hormone monitoring. Nat. Nanotechnol. 19, 330–337 (2024).10.1038/s41565-023-01513-0 ↗
18. Tu, J. et al. A wireless patch for the monitoring of C-reactive protein in sweat. Nat. Biomed. Eng. 7, 1293–1306 (2023).10.1038/s41551-023-01059-5 ↗
19. Choi, S.-G., Kang, S.-H., Lee, J.-Y., Park, J.-H. & Kang, S.-K. Recent advances in wearable iontronic sensors for healthcare applications. Front. Bioeng. Biotechnol. 11, 1335188 (2023).10.3389/fbioe.2023.1335188 ↗
20. Park, J. et al. Enhanced transdermal drug delivery by sonophoresis and simultaneous application of sonophoresis and iontophoresis. AAPS PharmSciTech 20, 96 (2019).10.1208/s12249-019-1309-z ↗
21. Sun, T. et al. Sequential biofluid sampling microfludic multi-sensing patch for more accurate sweat analysis under sedentary condition. Appl. Mater. Today 34, 101910 (2023).10.1016/j.apmt.2023.101910 ↗
22. Li, X. et al. A fully integrated closed-loop system based on mesoporous microneedles-iontophoresis for diabetes treatment. Adv. Sci. 8, 2100827 (2021).10.1002/advs.202100827 ↗
23. Xu, C. et al. A physicochemical-sensing electronic skin for stress response monitoring. Nat. Electron. 7, 168–179 (2024).10.1038/s41928-023-01116-6 ↗
24. FallahRad, M. et al. Wearable disposable electrotherapy. Nat. Commun. 16, 9060 (2025).10.1038/s41467-025-64101-x ↗
25. Zhang, D., Wang, M. J., Coppieters’t Wallant, S. C., Zhang, S. & Chiang, Y.-M. Toward zero-waste resource recovery from municipal solid waste incineration ash by electrochemical and chemical mining. Cell Rep. Sustain. 1, 100120 (2024).10.1016/j.crsus.2024.100120 ↗
26. Landrigan, P. J. et al. The Lancet Countdown on health and plastics. Lancet 406, 1044–1062 (2025).10.1016/S0140-6736(25)01447-3 ↗
27. Walker, T. R. Recycling alone cannot end the plastic pollution crisis. Cell Rep. Sustain. 2, 100521 (2025).10.1016/j.crsus.2025.100521 ↗
28. Hwangbo, J. et al. Bioresorbable polymers for electronic medicine. Cell Rep. Phys. Sci. 5, 102099 (2024).10.1016/j.xcrp.2024.102099 ↗
29. Kang, S.-K. et al. Bioresorbable silicon electronic sensors for the brain. Nature 530, 71–76 (2016).10.1038/nature16492 ↗
30. Kang, S.-K., Koo, J., Lee, Y. K. & Rogers, J. A. Advanced materials and devices for bioresorbable electronics. Acc. Chem. Res. 51, 988–998 (2018).10.1021/acs.accounts.7b00548 ↗
31. Rawson, T. M. et al. Microneedle biosensors for real-time, minimally invasive drug monitoring of phenoxymethylpenicillin: a first-in-human evaluation in healthy volunteers. Lancet Digit. Health 1, e335–e343 (2019).10.1016/S2589-7500(19)30131-1 ↗
32. Wang, Y. et al. Digital automation of transdermal drug delivery with high spatiotemporal resolution. Nat. Commun. 15, 511 (2024).10.1038/s41467-023-44532-0 ↗
33. Qin, X. et al. Wearable electrodriven switch actively delivers macromolecular drugs to fundus in non-invasive and controllable manners. Nat. Commun. 16, 33 (2025).10.1038/s41467-024-55336-1 ↗
34. Yin, L. et al. A stretchable epidermal sweat sensing platform with an integrated printed battery and electrochromic display. Nat. Electron. 5, 694–705 (2022).10.1038/s41928-022-00843-6 ↗
35. Islam, M. S. et al. Wearable organic-electrochemical-transistor-based lithium sensor for precision mental health. Device 3, 100054 (2025).10.1016/j.device.2025.100862 ↗
36. Li, C. et al. Design of biodegradable, implantable devices towards clinical translation. Nat. Rev. Mater. 5, 61–81 (2020).10.1038/s41578-019-0150-z ↗
37. Chen, L., Chen, S., Sun, B., Chen, J. & Zhang, Y. Wireless bioelectronic devices for next-generation electrotherapy. Cell Biomater. 1, 100054 (2025).10.1016/j.celbio.2025.100054 ↗
38. Kang, S.-H. et al. Fully biodegradable electrochromic display for disposable patch. npj Flex. Electron. 8, 72 (2024).10.1038/s41528-024-00360-w ↗
39. Pellitero, M. A. et al. Quantitative self-powered electrochromic biosensors. Chem. Sci. 8, 1995–2002 (2017).10.1039/C6SC04469G ↗
40. Aller Pellitero, M., Guimerà, A. N., Villa, R. & del Campo, F. J. iR drop effects in self-powered and electrochromic biosensors. J. Phys. Chem. C 122, 2596–2607 (2018).10.1021/acs.jpcc.7b11906 ↗
41. Aller-Pellitero, M. et al. Electrochromic biosensors based on screen-printed Prussian Blue electrodes. Sens. Actuators B Chem. 290, 591–597 (2019).10.1016/j.snb.2019.03.100 ↗
42. Santiago-Malagon, S. et al. A self-powered skin-patch electrochromic biosensor. Biosens. Bioelectron. 175, 112879 (2021).10.1016/j.bios.2020.112879 ↗
43. Yin, L. et al. Materials, designs, and operational characteristics for fully biodegradable primary batteries. Adv. Mater. 26, 3879–3884 (2014).10.1002/adma.201306304 ↗
44. Karami-Mosammam, M., Danninger, D., Schiller, D. & Kaltenbrunner, M. Stretchable and biodegradable batteries with high energy and power density. Adv. Mater. 34, 2204457 (2022).10.1002/adma.202204457 ↗
45. Wang, B. et al. Interlayer engineering of molybdenum trioxide toward high-capacity and stable sodium ion half/full batteries. Adv. Funct. Mater. 30, 2001708 (2020).10.1002/adfm.202001708 ↗
46. Kim, K. S. et al. Isotropic conductive paste for bioresorbable electronics. Mater. Today Bio 18, 100541 (2023).10.1016/j.mtbio.2023.100541 ↗
47. Kim, Y.-W. et al. Fully biodegradable and mass-producible conductive fiber based on tungsten–poly (butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) composite. npj Flex. Electron. 9, 62 (2025).10.1038/s41528-025-00448-x ↗
48. Yin, L. et al. Dissolvable metals for transient electronics. Adv. Funct. Mater. 24, 645–658 (2014).10.1002/adfm.201301847 ↗
49. Redlich, C., Quadbeck, P., Thieme, M. & Kieback, B. Molybdenum—a biodegradable implant material for structural applications? Acta Biomater. 104, 241–251 (2020).10.1016/j.actbio.2019.12.031 ↗
50. McKee, L. S. et al. Polysaccharide degradation by the Bacteroidetes: mechanisms and nomenclature. Environ. Microbiol. Rep. 13, 559–581 (2021).10.1111/1758-2229.12980 ↗
51. Puls, J., Wilson, S. A. & Hölter, D. Degradation of cellulose acetate-based materials: a review. J. Polym. Environ. 19, 152–165 (2011).10.1007/s10924-010-0258-0 ↗
52. Wang, Z. et al. Biosafety and biocompatibility assessment of Prussian blue nanoparticles in vitro and in vivo. Nanomedicine 15, 2655–2670 (2020).10.2217/nnm-2020-0191 ↗
53. Lee, M. H. et al. A biodegradable secondary battery and its biodegradation mechanism for eco-friendly energy-storage systems. Adv. Mater. 33, 2004902 (2021).10.1002/adma.202004902 ↗
54. Li, Z. et al. Enzymatic biofuel cell-powered iontophoretic facial mask for enhanced transdermal drug delivery. Biosens. Bioelectron. 223, 115019 (2023).10.1016/j.bios.2022.115019 ↗
55. Guan, S. et al. Microneedle-based biofuel cell with MXene/CNT hybrid bioanode: fundamental and biomedical application. Adv. Sci. 12, e16229 (2025).10.1002/advs.202516229 ↗
56. Roustit, M., Blaise, S. & Cracowski, J. L. Trials and tribulations of skin iontophoresis in therapeutics. Br. J. Clin. Pharmacol. 77, 63–71 (2014).10.1111/bcp.12128 ↗
57. Prasad, R., Anand, S. & Koul, V. Biophysical assessment of DC iontophoresis and current density on transdermal permeation of methotrexate. Int. J. Pharm. Investig. 1, 234 (2011).10.4103/2230-973X.93011 ↗
58. Chen, P.-W. et al. Fast response of complementary electrochromic device based on WO3/NiO electrodes. Sci. Rep. 10, 8430 (2020).10.1038/s41598-020-65191-x ↗
59. Mostaed, E., Vedani, M., Hashempour, M. & Bestetti, M. Influence of ECAP process on mechanical and corrosion properties of pure Mg and ZK60 magnesium alloy for biodegradable stent applications. Biomatter 4, e28283 (2014).10.4161/biom.28283 ↗
60. Huang, X. et al. A fully biodegradable battery for self-powered transient implants. Small 14, 1800994 (2018).10.1002/smll.201800994 ↗
61. Yuwono, J. A. et al. Aqueous electrochemistry of the magnesium surface: thermodynamic and kinetic profiles. Corros. Sci. 147, 53–68 (2019).10.1016/j.corsci.2018.10.014 ↗
62. Jiang, P. et al. Boosting discharge performance of primary Mg–air batteries via adopting sodium citrate as electrolyte to suppress self-corrosion of Mg anode during discharge. Chem. Eng. J. 511, 162200 (2025).10.1016/j.cej.2025.162200 ↗
63. Li, S. et al. Recent progress of electrolytes for Mg-air batteries: a review. J. Magnes. Alloy. 12, 4395–4421 (2024).10.1016/j.jma.2024.08.003 ↗
64. Wang, Z. et al. Microneedle patch for the ultrasensitive quantification of protein biomarkers in interstitial fluid. Nat. Biomed. Eng. 5, 64–76 (2021).10.1038/s41551-020-00672-y ↗
65. Liu, J., Lazaris, G., Lee, J. & Bhadra, S. Gelatin-organic acid-based biodegradable batteries for stretchable electronics. Adv. Energy Sustain. Res. 6, 2400402 (2025).10.1002/aesr.202400402 ↗
66. Wu, C. et al. Self-powered iontophoretic transdermal drug delivery system driven and regulated by biomechanical motions. Adv. Funct. Mater. 30, 1907378 (2020).10.1002/adfm.201907378 ↗
67. Ouyang, Q. et al. Self-powered, on-demand transdermal drug delivery system driven by triboelectric nanogenerator. Nano Energy 62, 610–619 (2019).10.1016/j.nanoen.2019.05.056 ↗
68. Zhang, Y. et al. Conductive, injectable, and spinnable aniline tetramer-modified polysaccharide hydrogels for self-powered electrically responsive drug release. ACS Appl. Polym. Mater. 4, 9206–9220 (2022).10.1021/acsapm.2c01506 ↗
69. Ge, Z. et al. Ambient moisture-driven self-powered iontophoresis patch for enhanced transdermal drug delivery. Adv. Healthc. Mater. 13, 2401371 (2024).10.1002/adhm.202401371 ↗
70. Garg, A. et al. Role of niacin in current clinical practice: a systematic review. Am. J. Med. 130, 173–187 (2017).10.1016/j.amjmed.2016.07.038 ↗
71. Gehring, W. Nicotinic acid/niacinamide and the skin. J. Cosmet. Dermatol. 3, 88–93 (2004).10.1111/j.1473-2130.2004.00115.x ↗
72. Lee, J.-H. et al. Strategic dispersion of carbon black and its application to ink-jet-printed lithium cobalt oxide electrodes for lithium ion batteries. J. Power Sources 196, 6449–6455 (2011).10.1016/j.jpowsour.2011.03.041 ↗
73. Yao, X. et al. Protonic solid-state electrochemical synapse for physical neural networks. Nat. Commun. 11, 3134 (2020).10.1038/s41467-020-16866-6 ↗
74. Balak, D. M. & Hajdarbegovic, E. Drug-induced psoriasis: clinical perspectives. Psoriasis Targets Ther. 87, 94 (2017).
75. Paiva-Santos, A. C. et al. Ethosomes as nanocarriers for the development of skin delivery formulations. Pharm. Res. 38, 947–970 (2021).10.1007/s11095-021-03053-5 ↗
76. Gao, X. et al. Site-specifically launched microneedles for the combined treatment of psoriasis-diabetic comorbidity. ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 15, 46613–46625 (2023).10.1021/acsami.3c08358 ↗
77. Hao, L. M. T. & Letran, E. L. A double-blind, randomized controlled trial on the efficacy and safety of 4% niacinamide cream on the treatment of mild to moderate chronic plaque psoriasis at the University of Santo Tomas Hospital Out-Patient Department. J. Philipp. Dermatol. Soc. 29, 20–34 (2020).
78. Luger, T. et al. Recommendations for adjunctive basic skin care in patients with psoriasis. Eur. J. Dermatol. 24, 194–200 (2014).10.1684/ejd.2014.2294 ↗
79. Nicoli, S., Zani, F., Bilzi, S., Bettini, R. & Santi, P. Association of nicotinamide with parabens: effect on solubility, partition and transdermal permeation. Eur. J. Pharm. Biopharm. 69, 613–621 (2008).10.1016/j.ejpb.2007.12.008 ↗
80. Wang, L.-H., Lin, Y.-P. & Lin, Y.-C. Screening nicotinamide in cosmetic and pharmaceutical products and nicotinic acid skin penetration from essential-oil formulations using attenuated total reflectance-infrared spectroscopy. Biomed. Spectrosc. Imaging 5, 89–97 (2016).10.3233/BSI-150126 ↗
81. Boonme, P., Boonthongchuay, C., Wongpoowarak, W. & Amnuaikit, T. Evaluation of nicotinamide microemulsion on the skin penetration enhancement. Pharm. Dev. Technol. 21, 116–120 (2016).10.3109/10837450.2014.971378 ↗
82. Avula, S. G. C., Alexander, K. & Riga, A. Thermal analytical characterization of mixtures of antipsychotic drugs with various excipients for improved drug delivery. J. Therm. Anal. Calorim. 123, 1981–1992 (2016).10.1007/s10973-015-4763-1 ↗
83. Jung, H., Kim, M. K., Lee, J. Y., Choi, S. W. & Kim, J. Adhesive hydrogel patch with enhanced strength and adhesiveness to skin for transdermal drug delivery. Adv. Funct. Mater. 30, 2004407 (2020).10.1002/adfm.202004407 ↗
84. Han, L. et al. Tough, self-healable and tissue-adhesive hydrogel with tunable multifunctionality. NPG Asia Mater. 9, e372–e372 (2017).10.1038/am.2017.33 ↗
85. Gao, Y. et al. Highly conductive hydrogel sensors driven by amylose with freezing and dehydration resistances. J. Mater. Chem. C 10, 12873–12882 (2022).10.1039/D2TC02205B ↗
86. Huang, Y. et al. Solvent exchange strengthening interpenetrating dual-network organohydrogels with anti-icing durability and friction resistance. ACS Omega 10, 27894–27903 (2025).10.1021/acsomega.5c01078 ↗
87. Jian, Y. et al. Antifreezing and stretchable organohydrogels as soft actuators. Res 2019, 2384347 (2019).
88. Huang, Y. et al. An in situ encapsulation strategy for enhancing the stability of hydrogels in both air and water through surface-confined copolymerization. Chem. Eng. J. 485, 149847 (2024).10.1016/j.cej.2024.149847 ↗
89. Han, Y. C. et al. A flexible moisture barrier comprised of a SiO2-embedded organic–inorganic hybrid nanocomposite and Al2O3 for thin-film encapsulation of OLEDs. Org. Electron. 14, 1435–1440 (2013).10.1016/j.orgel.2013.03.008 ↗
90. Wang, W. et al. Reversible structural evolution of sodium-rich rhombohedral Prussian blue for sodium-ion batteries. Nat. Commun. 11, 980 (2020).10.1038/s41467-020-14444-4 ↗
91. Kaschuk, J. J. et al. Cross-linked and surface-modified cellulose acetate as a cover layer for paper-based electrochromic devices. ACS Appl. Polym. Mater. 3, 2393–2401 (2021).10.1021/acsapm.0c01252 ↗