Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Shark Skin &

Updated 3/2017-- photos and all links removed as many are no longer active and it was easier than checking each one.

Did you happen to catch the CBS Sunday Morning piece by David Pogue  “How Shark Skin May Help Save Lives”? 
Turns out nothing grows on a shark’s skin.  Not barnacles.  Not bacteria.  This is why biomedical engineer Tony Brennan, University of Florida, is studying shark skin.
Initially, Brennan studied shark skin as a way to help the Navy solve the huge and expensive problem of barnacle buildup on their ships.
When he studied shark denticles under the electron microscope, he discovered why.
"I said, "Wow!, That shark pattern, I'd never seen it before,'" he said. And he believes that has something to do with no bacterial growth.
Brennan wondered if he could re-create the shark skin surface on plastic sheets.
"Sharks' denticles are set up like a diamond pattern," he said, showing Pogue a clear plastic sheet he called a Sharklet, which also had a diamond pattern. Its microscopic pattern of ridges mimics the denticles of shark skin.  (photo credit)
And when you stick it on ships, sure enough - NOTHING GROWS.
Dr. Shravanthi Reddy, director of research for Sharklet, is testing Sharklet to see if it can repel bacteria the way shark skin repels algae and barnacles.
Two pieces of plastic - one smooth, one patterned with Sharklet - are subjected to bacteria and incubated for 24 hours.
The electron microscope reveals the astounding results. The plain plastic is covered with a bacteria film - "Just these big clumps of bacteria all piled up on one another," Dr. Reddy said.
And on the Sharklet surface? "You might see one or two cells, but you don't see that big clumping the way you see it on the smooth surface," said Dr. Reddy. "What's really interesting is that there are no chemical differences between the surfaces. It's the same material. No differences, other than the physical shape."
If Sharklet really works, it could be used to cover many of the ordinary surfaces in a hospital and doctors office  -- bedside tables, door panels, stethoscopes, and as Dr. Reddy notes
"Those wristbands, have you ever seen anyone clean those wristbands?" said Dr. Reddy. "Never, right? And they're on the patient the whole time they're in the hospital."
As a way to fight community based MRSA and flu, it could be used to cover gym surfaces, desks in schools, play grounds.

The topic is to be explored further in tonight in the PBS "Nova" series, "Making Stuff."

5 comments:

StorytellERdoc said...

This is an interesting post, Ramona. Besides the obvious reasons for replicating shark skin, I wonder if there would be a grafting hope for some variation in the future for medical use.

Hope this finds you well!

ER's Mom said...

I'm imagining a place where there's a decreased biofilm but not due to chemicals...in our water supply.

Interesting start.

Gizabeth Shyder said...

Fascinating post - thanks for sharing! Soon the whole world will be covered in shark skin:) Hope that germ phobic moms (I am not one of those - a neat freak maybe, but bring on the bacteria) don't go too crazy with it - I'm laughing thinking of kids being sent outside to play wrapped in shark skin.

Anonymous said...

Wow! Very fascinating stuff.

Check out this podcast about bacteria-killing biofilm. Also very interesting: http://www.wellcomecollection.org/whats-on/events/packed-lunch-podcast/glass.aspx

Maryjonono said...

I watched that show. The possibility to cut down on nosocomial infections is so exciting! Imagine the savings in lives and dollars! And decreased use of antibiotics!