Photo: farmers.gov

Although just a snack for many, oysters are being used as research subject at Colgate University in New York State.

Mimicking the natural adhesives that oysters produce and use to stick to wood and other oysters, researchers from Colgate University are attempting to create environmentally friendly glues to be used in packaging, construction, and the medical field.

Rebecca Metzler says because the adhesive is made up of a mineral similar to what human bones contain, synthetic versions of this glue could be used to perform dental implants and bone repairs.

Other applications include making greener adhesives for the packaging industry and for underwater construction.

The team used the Canadian Light Source at the University of Saskatchewan to perform several aspects of their research.

“We were really just trying to learn more about what the adhesive is made up of and how it was structured, because it’s an underwater adhesive which is interesting and unique, and not much was known about it.”

However, Metzler says it could be years before a product comes to fruition.

She says moving forward, she plans to look into how climate change will impact oysters and their ability to make such adhesives.