Barnacle adhesion on natural and synthetic substrates: Adhesive structure and composition

Sessile marine creatures are known for their adhesion on diverse range of materials from naturally occurring rocks to synthetic material surfaces. The current work compares morphological variation in the adhesion of barnacles (Amphibalanus reticulatus) on a natural patterned surface such as the shells of a green mussel (Perna viridis) and a synthetic polymeric surface such as polymethylmethacrylate. The elemental analysis in conjunction with characterization of the protein in both these cements brings out the biochemical differences as a function of the attached substrate.