Creating a new type of 'glue' that helps seal the meninges after surgery

A group of American neurosurgeons and biological engineers have created a special "glue" used for meningeal surgeries.

According to IFLScience on March 22, during 10 years of searching for new methods to apply in treating damaged tissue, a group led by Professor David Mooney - working at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering (University of Harvard University, USA), noticed the mucus of the Dusky Arion snail.

The research team hopes to soon apply the new glue in brain surgeries - (Illustration: AFP).

This snail secretes a special type of mucus that sticks to the surface of objects to avoid the pursuit of predators. Based on this suggestion, the team created a hydrogel made from two polymers combined with an adhesive layer containing chitosan (the material that makes the outer shell of hard-shelled animals) and named it Tough Adhesive.

After learning about Tough Adhesive, neurosurgeon Kyle Wu and his colleagues thought this adhesive would be essential for doctors in meningeal surgery, especially to reseal the dura mater after surgery. .

The meninges consist of three parts: the dura mater, the arachnoid mater, and the innermost pia mater. The dura mater itself is quite thick and hard, like a layer of wax on cheese or a type of bioplastic wrap. 

Conventional options in meningeal surgery are not easy to perform, mainly because adhesives perform poorly in humid environments.

Sealing the meninges after surgery is a difficult job - (Photo: SEAS/MIT/Wyss).

By combining their expertise, the team of neurosurgeons and bioengineers behind Tough Adhesive created a new version of the adhesive called Dural Tough Adhesive (DTA).

They tested DTA on human-derived cells and in animal models, studying the effectiveness of the binder in mouse brains and pig spinal cords. In a series of tests, DTA proved to be more effective than existing adhesives.

The research team hopes that with the above positive research results, DTA will soon be ready to be used in real-world surgeries.

The study was published in the journal Science Translational Medicine on March 20.