title: The mechanical role of metal ions in biogenic protein-based materials.
abstract: Protein-metal interactions--traditionally regarded for roles in metabolic processes--are now known to enhance the performance of certain biogenic materials, influencing properties such as hardness, toughness, adhesion, and self-healing. Design principles elucidated through thorough study of such materials are yielding vital insights for the design of biomimetic metallopolymers with industrial and biomedical applications. Recent advances in the understanding of the biological structure-function relationships are highlighted here with a specific focus on materials such as arthropod biting parts, mussel byssal threads, and sandcastle worm cement.
authors.affiliation: Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces, Department of Biomaterials, Research Campus Golm, 14424 Potsdam (Germany).
authors.forename: Elena
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Degtyar
authors.forename: Matthew J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Harrington
authors.forename: Yael
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Politi
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Fratzl
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D032701:Biomimetics; D008667:Metalloproteins / Q000737:chemistry*; D008670:Metals / Q000737:chemistry*; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D011485:Protein Binding
chemical_list: D008667:Metalloproteins; D008670:Metals
keywords: adhesives; biomaterials; metal coordination; sacrificial bonds; self-healing materials