The cement of the tube-dwelling polychaete Sabellaria alveolata: a complex composite adhesive material

• Emilie Duthoo,
• Aurélie Lambert,
• Pierre Becker,
• Carla Pugliese,
• Jean-Marc Baele,
• Arnaud Delfairière,
• Matthew J. Harrington and
• Patrick Flammang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2025, 16, 1998–2014, doi:10.3762/bjnano.16.138

• material; Polychaeta; protein phosphorylation; Introduction Many invertebrate marine organisms have adhesive mechanisms that allow them to firmly attach to various substrates in a wet and salty environment [1][2]. This remarkable ability has raised the interest of scientists in developing bio-inspired

• occurrence of protein phosphorylation in biological adhesion has been reported in various organisms such as sandcastle worms, sea cucumbers, and mussels, and proposed to be an important component for their adhesion [19][44]. For example, mfp-5, an adhesive protein found in the mussel foot, has been shown to