NOW-ENW-XS
A green solution to a sticky situation: producing functional mussel adhesive proteins in plants
Mussels produce powerful natural protein glues that work even underwater and could make strong and safe medical adhesives. Harvesting the proteins from mussels is not sustainable and making them in bacteria is difficult and expensive.
This project explores using the plant Nicotiana benthamiana to produce these sticky proteins more efficiently and sustainably. By adding a beetroot gene that boosts the plant’s natural production of a key ingredient, L-DOPA, we aim to produce fully functional adhesive proteins in plant leaves. If successful, this research could lead to affordable, plant-based glues for medical applications and open new doors for making advanced biomaterials.