Putting Frog Feet to Good Use in Medicine

The medical industry could stand to benefit considerably if researchers engaged in a new study manage to replicate the natural ability that the feet of tree frogs have, of cleaning themselves. Numerous medical instruments could be improved if they can clean themselves.

What is so interesting about these particular feet is the fact that frogs use them to latch on to surfaces, while at the same time keeping them clean while they are moving about. The question here is how do you keep a sticky pad, like the one on the frog feet, clean of dirt.

Researchers at the University of Glasgow say that they may have cracked this mystery. According to their research, the frogs use the same mechanisms they employ to gain adherence on surfaces to clean their feet as they move on land.

Details of the investigation were presented on July 3, at the annual conference of the Society for Experimental Biology. The meeting was held in Glasgow, Scotland, Science Blog reports.

“Tree frog feet may provide a design for self-cleaning sticky surfaces, which could be useful for a wide range of products especially in contaminating environments – medical bandages, tire performance, and even long lasting adhesives,” Glasgow researcher Niall Crawford explains.

In the experimental setup the researchers set up, a frog was placed on a spinning platform. The team then measured to see at what angle the amphibians would lose their grip. The tests were carried out with frogs that initially had both clean and dirty feet pads.

Those with dirty pads fell off right away, but they managed to endure just as long as the others, if they were left to take a few “steps” on the platform. This is what gave the group a viable explanation.

“Interestingly the same factors that allow tree frogs to cling on also provide a self cleaning service. To make their feet sticky tree frogs secrete mucus, they can then increase their adhesion by moving their feet against the surface to create friction,” Crawford says.

“We have now shown that the mucus combined with this movement allows the frogs to clean their feet as they walk,” the team leader adds. He also says that the adhesive force recovered a lot slower in frogs that did not move to create friction.

In other words, taking a simple step allows an intricate mix of chemicals and physical forces to clean pads that would otherwise capture dirt non-stop. Translating this design into man-made materials would result in groundbreaking new medical equipment.