More importantly for biomaterials research, however, is the fact that, when dried, the mucin provides a suitable substrate for the attachment of living cells. This has important implications for tissue engineering, especially because of the elastic qualities of the adhesive. Essentially, a coating of Drosera mucilage on a surgical implant, such as a replacement hip or an organ transplant, could drastically improve the rate of recovery and decrease the potential for rejection, because living tissue can effectively attach and grow on it. The authors also suggest a wide variety of applications for Drosera mucin, including wound treatment, regenerative medicine, or enhancing synthetic adhesives. Because this mucilage can stretch to nearly a million times its original size and is readily available for use, it can be an extremely cost-efficient source of biomaterial.
more importantly for biomaterials research however is the fact that when dried the mucin provides a suitable substrate for the attachment of living cells this has important implications for tissue engineering especially because of the elastic qualities of the adhesive essentially a coating of drosera mucilage on a surgical implant such as a replacement hip or an organ transplant could drastically improve the rate of recovery and decrease the potential for rejection because living tissue can effectively attach and grow on it the authors also suggest a wide variety of applications for drosera mucin including wound treatment regenerative medicine or enhancing synthetic adhesives because this mucilage can stretch to nearly a million times its original size and is readily available for use it can be an extremely cost-efficient source of biomaterial