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takyon writes:

A new adhesive inspired by slugs could be used for surgeries and wound repair:

Usually there's a trade-off between flexibility and stickiness, [Jianyu Li] says. Super Glue works well on dry surfaces, but it's rigid and toxic, so it would never work for patching a beating heart or a bleeding wound. Other materials are flexible but not very sticky.

[...] He and his colleagues used the slug slime as a starting point to engineer a new adhesive material that combines ingredients like those in the slug mucus with a flexible gel.

The secret to the slug slime is that it can bond to surfaces in three different ways. It contains a chemical called a primary amine that has a positive charge. When it interacts with tissues and cells, which are negatively charged, the two surfaces attract like clingy laundry in the dryer. The material can also bond chemically to tissue, and it can physically attach by intertwining surface proteins like tangled telephone cords.

Li and his colleagues created a tough gelatin-like patch that is 90 percent water from a compound secreted by algae that has similar properties as the slug mucus. The result is as sticky as super glue, stretchier than a rubber band, works on wet surfaces and isn't toxic to human cells. Li says the material sticks as well to organs as cartilage does to bone.

Tough adhesives for diverse wet surfaces (DOI: 10.1126/science.aah6362) (DX)

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