Mucus has antibacterial properties: bony fish

Glands in the skin of bony fishes help protect the fish from bacterial infection via secreted mucus.

Biomimicry Taxonomy

	Maintain physical integrity >
	Protect from biotic factors >
	Microbes

Biomimetic Application Ideas

Antibacterial coatings for pipes, antibacterial cleaning products for medical facilities, management strategies for aquaculture farms.

> Visit strategy page

[Collapse all sections] Summary

"The typical bony fishes -- trout, herring, cod, and hundreds of other species -- have scales made of very thin, flake-like pieces of bone, often fine enough to be transparent. They are usually more or less rounded in outline: cycloid scales have smooth edges, while ctenoid scales have a spiked or serrated trailing edge (diagram b). The scales grow in the dermis, the inner layer of the skin, and are covered by a fine epidermis or outer skin layer: each scale fits into its own little pocket of epidermis (diagram c). The skin contains glands emitting mucus which keeps the scales slippery and flexible (as an angler knows to his cost) and also acts as an anti-septic, protecting the fish from bacterial infection. The scales grow by adding rings around the edge; they grow fast in summer but little in winter, and thus leave seasonal growth lines by which the age of the fish can be estimated." (Foy and Oxford Scientific Films 1982:86)

About the inspiring organism

Actinopterygii
Actinopterygii

Organism/taxonomy data provided by:
Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life: 2008 Annual Checklist

Bioinspired products and application ideas

Application Ideas: Antibacterial coatings for pipes, antibacterial cleaning products for medical facilities, management strategies for aquaculture farms.

Industrial Sector(s) interested in this strategy: Water supply, utility pipes, medical, aquaculture

References

Foy, Sally; Oxford Scientific Films. 1982. The Grand Design: Form and Colour in Animals. Lingfield, Surrey, U.K.: BLA Publishing Limited for J.M.Dent & Sons Ltd, Aldine House, London. 238 p.

Mucus has antibacterial properties: bony fish

Content tools

Curator of this page

Comments