In the mysterious and vast natural world, a marine organism called "mussel" is renowned for its excellent underwater adhesion ability.
These seemingly ordinary mollusks can remain as strong as rocks in rough seas, thanks to the presence of a 'bio glue factory' on their feet. When mussels choose their habitat, they secrete liquid proteins containing 3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine (DOPA) amino acids from their plantar glands, which undergo molecular cross-linking reactions when exposed to water and form gelatinous plaques with a network structure.
At the same time, the catechol groups contained in these gelatinous patches can form covalent bonds with the contact surface, maintaining high adhesion strength even under salt erosion and mechanical impact of seawater.
This natural phenomenon of adhesion has inspired scientists to explore for decades. Previous studies have found that a mussel like adhesive can achieve several times the adhesion strength of traditional epoxy resin in humid environments.
The perspective shifts to the human body itself. In the intricate biological system of the human body, the mucosal areas not covered by the skin (such as the respiratory tract and digestive tract) are covered with mucous layers up to hundreds of microns thick, which act as a strong barrier that can effectively block the invasion of bacteria and other pathogenic microorganisms.
This gel network composed of mucin has a unique "molecular sieve" function. The three-dimensional grid formed by its glycoprotein chain allows nutrients to pass through, but can effectively block pathogenic bacteria. For example, studies have shown that certain mucins have selective inhibitory effects on common pathogenic bacteria such as Staphylococcus aureus.
Recently, an interdisciplinary research team composed of MIT and Berlin Free University combined the key components of mussel adhesion mechanism with specific proteins in mucus (i.e. mucin) to create a new gel material, which not only has the strong viscosity and waterproof properties of mussel secretion, but also has antibacterial ingredients in natural mucus.
Specifically, this gel replicates the adhesion function of mussels and the human body's natural protective system (the antibacterial barrier function of mucus), and maintains excellent adhesion even in humid environments, and has inhibitory effect on a variety of bacteria, thus greatly reducing the risk of infection.
Reprinted from: https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/7YxYrDtS4edPdULFfR68Rg
