Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 19, 2026

Genetic Incorporation of Biosynthesized L-dihydroxyphenylalanine (DOPA) and Its Application to Protein Conjugation
Published on: August 24, 2018
Mini-review: the role of redox in Dopa-mediated marine adhesion
Sascha C T Nicklisch1, J Herbert Waite
1Marine Science Institute & Department of Molecular, Cell & Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA.
Abstract:
3, 4-Dihydroxyphenylanine (Dopa)-containing proteins are key to wet adhesion in mussels and possibly other sessile organisms also. However, Dopa-mediated adhesive bonding is a hard act to follow in that, at least in mussels, bonding depends on Dopa in both reduced and oxidized forms, for adhesion and cohesion, respectively. Given the vulnerability of Dopa to spontaneous oxidation, the most significant challenge to using it in practical adhesion is controlling Dopa redox in a temporally- and spatially defined manner. Mussels appear to achieve such control in their byssal attachment plaques, and factors involved in redox control can be measured with precision using redox probes such as the diphenylpicryl hydrazyl (DPPH) free radical. Understanding the specifics of natural redox control may provide fundamentally important insights for adhesive polymer engineering and antifouling strategies.
Related Concept Videos
Redox Reactions
Redox Reactions
Redox Equilibria: Overview
Adhesion
Capillary action is a result of water’s adhesive tendencies. When a narrow glass...
Microbes and Other Elemental Cycles
Redox Titration: Other Oxidizing and Reducing Agents
