Medicine inspired by nature.
Highlights:
- Biomimicry is a new science that uses nature as a source for innovation.
- Medical innovations inspired by nature encompass a variety of breakthroughs, such as gecko-inspired adhesives, medical-grade needles inspired by mosquitoes, and materials designed to prevent blood coagulation, among other notable examples.
- Marine animal proteins are being investigated for male contraceptives, and medical sensors inspired by photonic materials are being developed.
- Nature’s remarkable properties, such as the water-repellency found in lotus leaves, are being harnessed to minimize bacterial adhesion on medical devices, effectively reducing the risk of infections.
- Biomimicry shows promise in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine, leading to the development of bio-inspired materials for healthcare.
Imagine creating, reinventing, and impacting humanity by looking around you, drawing inspiration from creations that have been perfected for at least 3.5 billion years. Life on our planet has adapted and survived in highly complex conditions, and we can take advantage of its experience. What would happen if we merged nature with design, science, and technology?
Biomimicry, a relatively new science, precisely uses nature as a source for innovation. Dr. João F. Mano, a professor at the University of Aveiro in Portugal and editor-in-chief of Elsevier’s Materials Today Bio journal, defines it as “the process of copying straightforwardly the solutions that nature has been using to function or to interact with the environment.” He explains that our planet’s biodiversity has developed various responses to communicate, manage its energy, perceive its environment, and protect itself, among other aspects, and that comprehending them can provide us with solutions to various challenges in our daily lives.
There are many examples (…) on the way organisms were able to find adequate responses for environmental protection.
João F. Mano
For example, innovations that could revolutionize health are being explored in medicine. Among them are adhesives inspired by geckos’ feet, which have specialized hairs called setae. Other researchers have also noted mosquitoes’ efficiency in biting and taking blood without causing much damage, allowing medical-grade needles to be redesigned to minimize pain and maximize precision. But biomimicry isn’t just limited to animal anatomy. Innovations inspired by mosquito saliva, which contains substances that prevent blood coagulation, have also emerged, which could help avoid thrombosis when using unique materials that come into contact with blood, such as catheters.
In this sense, at the UNAM Institute of Chemistry, the team led by Dr. Roberto Arreguín has investigated specific marine animal proteins that act on sperm capacitation, intending to develop a male contraceptive. Also, medical sensors inspired by photonic materials observed in nature have emerged in the scientific community. And we can’t forget the water-repellency properties discovered in lotus leaves, known as superhydrophobicity, which could potentially reduce the adhesion of bacteria to medical devices, thus preventing the risk of infections.
Dr. Mano’s team, on the other hand, is exploring the potential of bees as pollination specialists, intending to apply this functionality in drug delivery via patches. In addition, they use highly water-repellent surfaces “to process particles to be used in the delivery of drugs.” Also, they have turned their attention to the marine ecosystem, investigating the properties of mussels to create medical adhesives.
Another group of innovative bioinspired solutions will be associated with further progresses in producing living and functional tissues for transplantation.
João F. Mano
Soon, Dr. Mano reveals that biomimetics will open new perspectives in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. He explains how there could be “additional advances in the production of living and functional tissues for transplantation” to treat diseases with solutions directly inspired by the wisdom of life itself.
Biomimicry allows us to learn from nature and adapt its solutions to the complex problems that arise in our daily lives. With it, we open the door to a new era of innovation, where nature and technology merge for the benefit of humanity. Dr. Mano predicts “new and exciting bio-inspired materials with unprecedented properties will be developed for use in the healthcare industry.”
