Wherever you go there is so much mystery and beauty in the natural world. I like to snorkel and dive. Underwater you can still see ecosystems full of wildlife just like they are supposed to be. There is a connection between mussels and medical glue: byssus. The other day I took a photo where you can see the byssus threads. This has been called sea silk and was once worn by European royalty. It is also one of the best ‘wet glues’ in the animal kingdom. Scientists study its properties for life-saving medical applications such as surgery on unborn babies in the womb.
Byssus or sea silk
The threads’ integrity comes not only from its strength but its ability to stretch. Able to extend by a third before breaking, it is stiff at one end, and flexible at the other. The mussel arranges the byssus to optimise its resilienceReferring to an ecosystem’s ability to maintain a steady stable-state. The need to build resilience is entirely anthropocentric and symptomatic of ecosystems that are damaged or declining, leading to loss of ecosystem services on which humans depend. More against raging currents and tides.
‘… proteins [are] spewed … in liquid form similar to injection moulding in polymer processing, and [bubble] into a sticky foam. By curling its foot into a tube and pumping the foam, the mussel produces sticky threads about the size of a human hair.’
The protein is mostly collagen, which is what your skin is made from.
‘The mussel then varnishes the threads with another protein, resulting in an adhesive.’ The proteins for this include iron, as well as the naturally scarce metal vanadium, which industrialists also use to increase the strength of steel.
The threads of a related mollusc up to 1m long were once used in Italy to create rare garments and artwork. This commercial practice is now outlawed for environmental reasons. But there are artisans working with it sustainably
“The byssus is the soul of the sea. It is sacred”, says Chiara Vigo in Sardinia, ‘It takes 300 or 400 dives to gather 200g of material’. https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-33691781.
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