Santa Clara University   Finding Strength in Nature  Caption:
Jens Olesen and Matt Blanco are recording promising results for
their nanobioglue. Credit: Heidi Williams  Nature is always the
best engineer and now bioengineering students Matt Blanco and
Jens Olesen are hoping that by mimicking properties found in
marine life, they can improve the adhesive strength of medical
glues.  “Biological organisms in nature, such as mussels and
barnacles, are known to release secretions containing
nanoparticles when adhering to surfaces,” said Olesen, an
exchange student from Sweden studying at SCU this year. “Using
this concept,” he continued, “we hope to improve the adhesive
strength of cyanoacrylate glues by adding carbon nanotubes. If
our assumption is correct, our findings would guide the
development of stronger medical glues.”  To prove their theory,
the team would need a supply of glue, so they contacted Chemence
Medical, a leading manufacturer of medical wound closure
adhesives. “They offered to share as much of