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Abstract:
Not too long ago, a man had the misfortune of losing a fight with an unforgiving power tool. As a result, the man lost the tip of one of his thumbs up to the knuckle. We look to nature for products because natural selection has had an incredible amount of time to optimize substances for varied purposes. Why should scientists attempt the arduous task of designing from scratch when existing, novel, natural products can be isolated and modified for our specific purposes?

Substances that originated from and have been isolated from natural organisms include the anti-cancer drug Taxol, from the bark of the Yew tree, and Hirudin, an anti-clotting drug from common blood- sucking leeches. Other products include Cell Tak, an adhesive isolated from mussels, and certain amino acids from marine creatures that might be useful as a natural sunscreen.

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Not too long ago, a man had the misfortune of losing a fight with an unforgiving power tool. As a result, the man lost the tip of one of his thumbs up to the knuckle.  Medical attention was swift and simple -- it was stitched up. At an earlier time, the man would have been expected to join the ranks of machinists who have either "misplaced" a digit or accumulated interesting scar tissue.  But he was given the option of reconstructive surgery. But where would the replacement bone come from? It came from coral, the building material of a class of marine organisms.Unusual? Hardly.

We have long depended upon the natural environment to provide researchers with natural products and gain insight into the workings of biochemical systems. We look to nature for products because natural selection has had an incredible amount of time to optimize substances for varied purposes. Why should scientists attempt the arduous task of designing from scratch when existing, novel, natural products can be isolated and modified for our specific purposes?

Good places to look for such substances are the areas of the globe where a high concentration of plant and animal species exist. These include the equatorial regions, including rain forests, as well as the vast oceans. It's possible that these areas will result in the most novel substances. Substances that originated from and have been isolated from natural organisms include the anti-cancer drug Taxol, from the bark of the Yew tree, and Hirudin, an anti-clotting drug from common blood- sucking leeches. Other products include Cell Tak, an adhesive isolated from mussels, and certain amino acids from marine creatures that might be useful as a natural sunscreen.

In Robert Shadwick's lab at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, we look at how proteins function based upon their composition. Specifically, we look at marine snails. Most marine snails encapsulate their young in a biological material that has interesting material properties.

Photo left: Busycon canaliculatum, a marine snail and the encapsulated egg material

This material behaves much like a rubber band, but if you pull it enough, it gives. Often when materials yield like this, it's because of damaged material. Not with our snail protein. If you allow it to return to its normal length and begin to pull on it again, the material will behave in exactly the same way.

We hope to understand what causes these properties by implementing techniques from biochemistry, molecular biology and materials engineering.  If a unique mechanism is at work, we will look into the feasibility of engineering proteins. Just imagine having your damaged ligament replaced with a material that will yield slightly during an overstretch rather than tear, and then return to its normal state. 

But as our technology advances, we are faced with a burgeoning crisis. The growing concern given to the loss of genetic variation (in the dwindling number of plant and animal species) has been largely brought about by shrinking habitats and human interference.  Resources and efforts are being directed into the task of preserving status quo with the environment for future generations. There are a multitude of reasons why conservation should be foremost in the minds of biologists. The potential loss of novel chemical and protein systems is one important reason.


The text of the above article originally appeared in the San Diego Union-Tribune on May 24,2000. Copyright SAN DIEGO UNION TRIBUNE PUBLISHING COMPANY May 24, 2000.

Useful websites:
Shadwick Biomechanics Lab
Biomaterials Network

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