- City
- Aveiro
- Country
- Portugal
- Stage of project
- Stage 2: R&D
- Sea basin regions
- Atlantic Ocean (including North Sea)
- Topics
- Other
- Topics - other
- Marine Biotechnology
- Categories
- Business and innovation (creation, process, strategy, product, service, etc.) related to sustainable use of marine resources
The development of innovative bio-inspired materials can benefit from studying the immense unexplored biodiversity of the sea. The order Sacoglossa consists of marine sea slugs with the striking ability to “steal” intact functional chloroplasts (kleptoplasts) of their macroalgal food sources. These sea slugs are the only animals known to exhibit long-term retention of functional chloroplasts.Sacoglossan sea slugs produce abundant mucus for locomotion, to adhere to the substratum, and as a defensive strategy. With this study, we aim to determine the biochemical composition of mucus produced by temperate and tropical sea slug species (Elysia viridis and Elysia crispata, respectively). The contribution of kleptoplast photosynthesis to mucus production will be evaluated. Finally, the adhesive properties of sea slug mucus will be characterized, and its potential biomedical applications will be explored.