Scientists Learn from Spiders to Revolutionize Medical Surgery

MIT researchers, inspired and guided by spiderwebs, have developed a special double-sided tape that could close wounds – and perhaps even implant medical devices – on internal organs during surgery.

The adhesive works in high levels of moisture, drying tissue and creating a strong bond within merely 5 seconds. The idea came from studying spiders’ abilities to trap insects with their webs even on damp days.

“There are over 230 million major surgeries all around the world per year, and many of them require sutures to close the wound, which can actually cause stress on the tissues and can cause infections, pain, and scars,” says study author Xuanhe Zhao, a mechanical engineer at MIT. “We are proposing a fundamentally different approach to sealing tissue.”