Bacterial Adhesion Systems as an Alternative for the Industry: a Case Study
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Published:31 May 2013
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Special Collection: 2013 ebook collection , 2011-2015 industrial and pharmaceutical chemistry subject collection
N. Cuesta‐Garrote, M. Escoto‐Palacios, F. Arán‐Ais, and C. Orgilés‐Barceló, in Biological and Biomimetic Adhesives: Challenges and Opportunities, ed. R. Santos, N. Aldred, S. Gorb, and P. Flammang, The Royal Society of Chemistry, 2013, pp. 132-146.
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It is well known that there are many different natural organisms able to adhere strongly to surfaces even in highly adverse conditions where conventional synthetic adhesives would fail. In the case of bacteria, this adhesion may occur through the formation of biofilms by means of diverse mechanisms that involve biopolymers such as proteins.
This has led several scientists to undertake research on the use of adhesive proteins as the base polymer for the formulation of adhesives. Due to the nature of these polymers, the impact of such adhesives on the environment is expected to be reduced, their waste disposal being possible without the appearance of substances that may be considered harmful to the environment. Moreover, their synthesis and formulation can be achieved in an aqueous medium.
In this review, a brief analysis is made of the natural adhesion systems that have inspired the authors to propose obtaining bacterial adhesive proteins by industrial microbiology and microbial biotechnology techniques as a way to achieve the current aim of the industry to reduce the environmental impact of their business and to produce distinctive items with an added value.