Research team analyzes peptides from fish gills to engineer specialized antimicrobial surfaces
Thursday, November 29, 2012 - 08:31
in Biology & Nature
(Phys.org)—Living in an environment teaming with bacteria and fungi, fish have evolved powerful defenses against waterborne pathogens, including antimicrobial peptides located in their gills. Undergraduate researchers at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) are studying the biology and the mechanics of one of those peptides with the hope they can use that knowledge to create engineered surfaces that kill bacteria responsible for foodborne illnesses and hospital-acquired infections.