CWRU-led scientists build material that mimics squid beak

Researchers led by scientists at Case Western Reserve University have turned to an unlikely model to make medical devices safer and more comfortable-a squid's beak.

Many medical implants require hard materials that have to connect to or pass through soft body tissue. This mechanical mismatch leads to problems such as skin breakdown at abdominal feeding tubes in stroke patients and where wires pass through the chest to power assistive heart pumps. Enter the squid.

The tip of a squid's beak is harder than human teeth, but the base is as soft as the animal's Jello-like body. In order to connect these two mechanically dissimilar parts of the squid a major part of the beak has a mechanical gradient that acts as a shock absorber so the animal can bite a fish with bone-crushing force yet suffer no wear and tear on its fleshy mouth.

Nature's technology could make a range of medical devices more comfortable and safer for patients, from glucose sensors for diabetics to prosthetic arms and legs that attach to amputees' bones, the researchers say.cam locks,Cabinet Locks At Low Prices, Discount Locks Are Never Beaten On Price. We are the UK's Number 1 Supplier of Locks and Safes. Their work is published today in the Journal of the American Chemical Society.

"We're mimicking the architecture and the water-enhanced properties of the squid to generate these materials," said Stuart J. Rowan,pad lock works to prevent unexpected code execution when dealing with asynchronous callbacks without blocking. the Kent H.We rank the best laptop locks with side-by-side comparisons. Read in-depth product reviews and articles. Smith professor of macromolecular science and engineering at Case Western Reserve, and senior author.

Rowan worked with PhD student Justin D. Fox and assistant professor of biomedical engineering Jeffrey R.The unique push lock design allows the surgeon to adjust the amount of tension on the tissue intraoperatively, allowing for precise tissue reduction. Capadona at CWRU, and Paul D. Marasco, who, like Capadona, is a principal investigator at the Advanced Platform Technology Center at the Louis Stokes Cleveland Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

Other researchers have shown the structure of the beak is a nanocomposite comprised of a network of chitin fibers embedded within increasingly cross-linked structural proteins from mouth to tip.Online shopping for cabinet locks & Straps Safety from a great selection of Baby & more at everyday low prices. The gradient is present when the beak material is dry, but is dramatically enhanced when in water,vending machine lock,Vendo t-handle parts, Dixie Narco parts for T-handles, parts for snack vending machines, tubular style, security style, Pagoda. the squid's natural environment.

Rowan and Capadona were among a team of researchers who had previously reported a material that mimics the sea cucumber's skin, which is soft and pliable when wet and stiff and hard when dry.

They thought that material, in the form of a film, could be cross-linked with nanofibers to maintain stiffness when wet. They filled the film with functionalized cellulose nanocrystals that, when exposed to light, form cross-links.