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Biomimetics and Biotechnology: Bioinspiration for the Development of Scientific Innovation
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Biomimetics and Biotechnology: Bioinspiration for the Development of Scientific Innovation

A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Biochemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 October 2020) | Viewed by 25266

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Claire Hellio

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Biotechnology, University of Brest, Brest, France
Interests: marine biotechnology; biomimetics; bioactives; bioassays; new non-toxic antifouling solutions; new biocides; marine natural products; marine biochemistry
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Concetta Messina

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Earth and Marine Sciences, University of Palermo, Laboratory of Marine Biochemistry and Ecotoxicology, via Barlotta 4, Trapani, Italy
Interests: fish quality; aquaculture; aquatic ecotoxicology; fish diets; marine lipids; polyunsaturated fatty acids; marine bioactive compounds; marine biotechnology; zero waste; circular economy
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear colleagues,

Biotechnologies contribute to the production of valuable bioproducts from land and aquatic biomass and also from the wastes generated from production, to promote the circular economy. In order to achieve a sustainable and competitive bioeconomy, it is necessary to improve the transfer of bio-based products from research to production scale. Biomimetism is an approach to innovation that seeks sustainable solutions to human challenges by emulating nature’s time-tested patterns and strategies. Thus, biomimetism can spark a variety of human innovations, inspire cutting-edge discoveries, and solve human problems. Biomimetism can be achieved by mimicking nature form or function, natural processes, and natural systems.

This Issue will accept papers related to the development and transfer of biotechnological and bioinspired solutions (areas such as bioactives, food and feed, nutraceuticals, cosmetics, pharmaceutics, and antifouling) from a wide range of organisms (from microorganisms to vertebrates). Submitted papers can focus on biochemistry, molecular and cell biology, and molecular biology.

Prof. Dr. Claire Hellio
Dr. Concetta Messina
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. There is an Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal. For details about the APC please see here. Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Biotechnology
  • Biomimetics
  • Bioactives
  • Functional food and feed
  • Biomaterials
  • Nutraceuticals
  • Cosmetics
  • Pharmaceutics
  • Biomedical

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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18 pages, 7352 KiB  
Article
Biomimetic Approaches for the Development of New Antifouling Solutions: Study of Incorporation of Macroalgae and Sponge Extracts for the Development of New Environmentally-Friendly Coatings
by Ilse Sánchez-Lozano, Claudia Judith Hernández-Guerrero, Mauricio Muñoz-Ochoa and Claire Hellio
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2019, 20(19), 4863; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms20194863 - 30 Sep 2019
Cited by 25 | Viewed by 4476
Abstract
Biofouling causes major economic losses in the maritime industry. In our site study, the Bay of La Paz (Gulf of California), biofouling on immersed structures is a major problem and is treated mostly with copper-based antifouling paints. Due to the known environmental effect [...] Read more.
Biofouling causes major economic losses in the maritime industry. In our site study, the Bay of La Paz (Gulf of California), biofouling on immersed structures is a major problem and is treated mostly with copper-based antifouling paints. Due to the known environmental effect of such treatments, the search for environmentally friendly alternatives in this zone of high biodiversity is a priority to ensure the conservation and protection of species. The aim of this work was to link chemical ecology to marine biotechnology: indeed, the natural defense of macroalgae and sponge was evaluated against biofoulers (biofilm and macrofoulers) from the same geographical zone, and some coatings formulation was done for field assays. Our approach combines in vitro and field bioassays to ensure the selection of the best AF agent prospects. The 1st step consisted of the selection of macroalgae (5 species) and sponges (2 species) with surfaces harboring a low level of colonizers; then extracts were prepared and assayed for toxicity against Artemia, activity towards key marine bacteria involved in biofilm formation in the Bay of La Paz, and the potency to inhibit adhesion of macroorganisms (phenoloxidase assays). The most active and non-toxic extracts were further studied for biofouling activity in the adhesion of the bacteria involved in biofilm formation and through incorporation in marine coatings which were immersed in La Paz Bay during 40 days. In vitro assays demonstrated that extracts of Laurencia gardneri, Sargassum horridum (macroalgae), Haliclona caerulea and Ircinia sp. (sponges) were the most promising. The field test results were of high interest as the best formulation were composed of extracts of H. caerulea and S. horridum and led to a reduction of 32% of biofouling compared with the control. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biomimetics and Biotechnology: Bioinspiration for the Development of Scientific Innovation)
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13 pages, 3202 KiB  
Article
Xenopus Oocyte’s Conductance for Bioactive Compounds Screening and Characterization
by Amani Cheikh, Hager Tabka, Yassine Tlili, Andrea Santulli, Noureddine Bouzouaya, Balkiss Bouhaouala-Zahar and Rym Benkhalifa
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2019, 20(9), 2083; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms20092083 - 27 Apr 2019
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 3135
Abstract
Background: Astaxanthin (ATX) is a lipophilic compound found in many marine organisms. Studies have shown that ATX has many strong biological properties, including antioxidant, antiviral, anticancer, cardiovascular, anti-inflammatory, neuro-protective and anti-diabetic activities. However, no research has elucidated the effect of ATX on ionic [...] Read more.
Background: Astaxanthin (ATX) is a lipophilic compound found in many marine organisms. Studies have shown that ATX has many strong biological properties, including antioxidant, antiviral, anticancer, cardiovascular, anti-inflammatory, neuro-protective and anti-diabetic activities. However, no research has elucidated the effect of ATX on ionic channels. ATX can be extracted from shrimp by-products. Our work aims to characterize ATX cell targets to lend value to marine by-products. Methods: We used the Xenopus oocytes cell model to characterize the pharmacological target of ATX among endogenous Xenopus oocytes’ ionic channels and to analyze the effects of all carotenoid-extract samples prepared from shrimp by-products using a supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) method. Results: ATX inhibits amiloride-sensitive sodium conductance, xINa, in a dose-dependent manner with an IC50 of 0.14 µg, a maximum inhibition of 75% and a Hill coefficient of 0.68. It does not affect the potential of half activation, but significantly changes the kinetics, according to the slope factor values. The marine extract prepared from shrimp waste at 10 µg inhibits xINa in the same way as ATX 0.1 µg does. When ATX was added to the entire extract at 10 µg, inhibition reached that induced with ATX 1 µg. Conclusions: ATX and the shrimp Extract inhibit amiloride-sensitive sodium channels in Xenopus oocytes and the TEVC method makes it possible to measure the ATX inhibitory effect in bioactive SFE-Extract samples. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biomimetics and Biotechnology: Bioinspiration for the Development of Scientific Innovation)
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Review

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30 pages, 4701 KiB  
Review
Biomimetic Membranes with Transmembrane Proteins: State-of-the-Art in Transmembrane Protein Applications
by Hyunil Ryu, Ahmed Fuwad, Sunhee Yoon, Huisoo Jang, Jong Chan Lee, Sun Min Kim and Tae-Joon Jeon
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2019, 20(6), 1437; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms20061437 - 21 Mar 2019
Cited by 25 | Viewed by 16905
Abstract
In biological cells, membrane proteins are the most crucial component for the maintenance of cell physiology and processes, including ion transportation, cell signaling, cell adhesion, and recognition of signal molecules. Therefore, researchers have proposed a number of membrane platforms to mimic the biological [...] Read more.
In biological cells, membrane proteins are the most crucial component for the maintenance of cell physiology and processes, including ion transportation, cell signaling, cell adhesion, and recognition of signal molecules. Therefore, researchers have proposed a number of membrane platforms to mimic the biological cell environment for transmembrane protein incorporation. The performance and selectivity of these transmembrane proteins based biomimetic platforms are far superior to those of traditional material platforms, but their lack of stability and scalability rule out their commercial presence. This review highlights the development of transmembrane protein-based biomimetic platforms for four major applications, which are biosensors, molecular interaction studies, energy harvesting, and water purification. We summarize the fundamental principles and recent progress in transmembrane protein biomimetic platforms for each application, discuss their limitations, and present future outlooks for industrial implementation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biomimetics and Biotechnology: Bioinspiration for the Development of Scientific Innovation)
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