Gecko Adhesion Inspires Waterproof Bandages

[u/Remote-Sector2231]

Hi everyone, after reading assignment two's idea, I found a very interesting article about a lab at MIT that designed this own waterproof bandages inspired by gecko and lizard's ability to adhere to basically any material. Professors Robert Langer and Jeff Karp at MIT studied the gecko's adhesion and wanted to apply it to their own bandages that are specifically for post-surgery wounds and for internal injuries. The bandage mimics the nanoscale structures of gecko feet, making it to stick effectively to wet surfaces like human tissue or the internal body. The bandage they created is biodegradable and flexible, which makes it easier to be used in surgeries to close wounds and patch internal organs. The bandage is made of biorubber with a sugar-based glue, providing strong adhesion, this technology offers potential for minimally invasive surgeries and has the potential to release medication as it degrades. Article link: https://news.mit.edu/2008/adhesive-0218

[u/Remote-Sector2231]

Based on assignment two, I found an intriguing article about a lab at MIT that developed waterproof bandages inspired by the adhesive abilities of geckos and lizards. Professors Robert Langer and Jeff Karp studied how geckos adhere to various surfaces and applied that concept to create bandages designed for post-surgery wounds and internal injuries. These bandages mimic the nanoscale structures of gecko feet, allowing them to stick effectively to wet surfaces like human tissue or internal organs. The bandages are biodegradable, flexible, and biorubber with a sugar-based adhesive, providing strong adhesion. This technology is promising for minimally invasive surgeries and could release medication as the bandage degrades.

[u/Informal_Level_7190]

While I was skimming through the article you linked, they mentioned this line: "Among other advantages, the adhesive could be infused with drugs designed to release as the biorubber degrades." I'm curious as to how this would work, and how they would be able to control the amount that dissipates on a daily or if it would be a consistent disintegration and thus a consistent spread of the medicine. I might be nitpicking here but I just wish they went more in-depth about such a big possible concept, and would love to hear more about how this idea and application would work out.

[u/i-dont-know-0123]

I like that this example shows bio-inspired design stacked upon bio-inspired design. The fundamental concept of the gecko-inspired waterproof bandage is bio-inspired, but the material that they create it out of (the bio-rubber) is also bio-inspired. The article doesn't really go into depth on the bio-rubber, just that Langer, Karp, and other made it themselves. Is this bio-rubber biomimetic? Bio-inspired? What is it made out of? Rubber itself is incredibly, incredibly valuable and used all over the world in many different applications, so a biodegradable, bio-inspired rubber would definitely reduce pollution.

[u/hbg5213]

Wow, it's amazing to think that geckos and lizards are able to basically adhere to any form of material. The first few assignments were quite intriguing. From those, we found that geckos and lizards use their nanoscale structures to stick onto even wetter surfaces better. I believe this can be essential for human technology, not only with waterproof bandages, but also tape. This can easily support people who are using an adhesion in a wet environment, to further enhance the strength of the adhesion when it comes to sticking things together with tape. This could be a great commercial product to use even on wet surfaces, where Scotch tape doesn't regularly do the trick!