Bacteria make the world's most durable glue

Caulobacter crescentus is the best adhesion creature in nature.( Photo: Nature )

Geckos, mussels and oysters now have to step aside - when physicists find the owner of the world's most durable glue, the Caulobacter crescentus , which clings to river rocks.

Caulobacter crescentus is often the first creature to inhabit any water surface, from hulls, rivers, streams or water pipes, to urinary catheters. It is famous for its ability to move hard, to resist the pressure of strong currents.

The glue produced by Caulobacter crescentus can stick to a surface even when subjected to a tensile force equivalent to four cars placed on a coin.

Specifically, it can withstand traction of up to 70 newtons per millimeter, while commercially strong adhesives are broken under the effect of 18-28 newtons per square millimeter.

And now scientists are trying to resolve the mystery of making this material. They found that the glue was made of long-chain sugar molecules called polysaccharides . It is unclear how this glue works, but scientists still speculate that there must be some special proteins attached to those sugar molecules.

" We have seen obvious applications because this glue works on wet surfaces," said lead researcher Yves Brun, a microbiologist at Indiana University. "One possibility is to use it to make biodegradable surgical glue ." Engineers can also use this super adhesive.

However, "the challenge will be to create super glue with large quantities without sticking to anything used to make it ," Brun said.

T. An