The discovery of the remarkable properties of velvet worm slime has sent shockwaves through the scientific community, offering new hope for sustainable material design. Researchers from McGill University have made a groundbreaking find that could lead to the development of next-generation recyclable bioplastics.

Velvet worms, small caterpillar-like creatures found in humid forests of the southern hemisphere, possess an extraordinary ability – their slime can transform from liquid to fibre and back again. This remarkable property has puzzled scientists for centuries, but a team led by Matthew Harrington, a chemistry professor and Canada Research Chair in green chemistry, has finally decoded the molecular structure behind this phenomenon.

Using protein sequencing and AI-driven structure prediction (AlphaFold), the researchers identified previously unknown proteins in the slime that function similarly to cell receptors in the immune system. These receptor proteins appear to link large structural proteins during fibre formation, enabling the slime’s remarkable reversibility.

The implications of this discovery are profound. Traditional plastics and synthetic fibres require energy-intensive processes to manufacture and recycle, often involving heat or chemical treatments. In contrast, the velvet worm uses simple mechanical forces – pulling and stretching – to generate strong, durable fibres from biorenewable precursors, which can later be dissolved and reused without harmful byproducts.

While a plastic bottle that dissolves in water may seem like an impractical solution, Harrington believes that adjusting the chemistry of this binding mechanism could overcome this limitation. The team’s next challenge will be to experimentally verify the binding interactions and explore whether the principle can be adapted for engineered materials.

The study was co-authored by researchers from McGill University and Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in Singapore, highlighting the importance of international collaboration in addressing pressing global challenges.

As Harrington aptly puts it, “Nature has already figured out a way to make materials that are both strong and recyclable. By decoding the molecular structure of velvet worm slime, we’re now one step closer to replicating that efficiency for the materials we use every day.”

The world’s deadliest infectious disease, tuberculosis (TB), claims over 1 million lives annually. Despite advancements in diagnosis and treatment, TB remains a significant challenge, particularly in developing nations where access to chest X-rays and molecular diagnostics is limited. Current diagnostic methods often have high false negative rates and require extensive sample preparation, delaying diagnosis.

MIT chemists have developed a breakthrough approach using an organic molecule that reacts with specific sulfur-containing sugars found only in three bacterial species, including Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), the microbe responsible for TB. By labeling a glycan called ManLAM using this small-molecule tag, researchers can now visualize where it is located within the bacterial cell wall and study what happens to it throughout the first few days of tuberculosis infection.

The research team led by Laura Kiessling, Novartis Professor of Chemistry at MIT, aims to use this approach to develop a diagnostic that could detect TB-associated glycans in culture or urine samples. This would provide a cheaper and faster alternative to existing diagnostics, making it more accessible to developing nations where TB rates are high.

Using their small-molecule sensor instead of antibodies, the researchers hope to create a more sensitive test that can detect ManLAM in the urine even when only small quantities are present. This has significant implications for TB diagnosis and treatment, particularly for patients with very active cases or those who are immunosuppressed due to HIV or other conditions.

The research was funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, and the Croucher Fellowship. The findings have the potential to revolutionize TB diagnosis and improve patient outcomes worldwide.

The discovery of a new approach to drug design, called GlycoCaging, has opened up promising possibilities for targeted treatment of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) in humans. This innovative technique involves releasing medicine directly into the lower gut at significantly lower doses than current therapies.

Researchers from the University of British Columbia (UBC) have developed this mechanism, which relies on specific bacteria residing in the human gut to unlock the “treasure chest” containing the medicine. By bonding a molecule to a steroid, the researchers have created a system that can deliver potent drugs directly to the inflamed areas of the gut.

According to Dr. Harry Brumer and Dr. Laura Sly, co-senior authors of the study published in Science, this technique has the potential to revolutionize the treatment of IBD, which affects an estimated 322,600 Canadians as of 2023. The current treatments for IBD often come with serious side effects, including osteoporosis, high blood pressure, diabetes, and negative mental health outcomes.

Using mice models of IBD, the researchers demonstrated that GlycoCaging can deliver medicine at doses up to 10 times lower than non-caged versions while achieving the same anti-inflammatory effects. The study showed that the drug was targeted exclusively to the gut, with minimal absorption in other areas of the body.

The potential for human treatment is promising, as the research team found that all people had the ability to activate the drugs using the GlycoCaging system, even those with IBD. Moreover, the majority of participants had genetic markers indicating their ability to use this system.

While more advanced animal trials and human clinical trials are needed to further validate the efficacy and safety of GlycoCaging, this innovative approach has the potential to transform the treatment of IBD and other gut-related disorders. The UBC researchers have patented the technology, paving the way for future development and implementation in humans.