12 thoughts on “D52 – Seward

    1. Based on our research it seems as though the mucin suffocated the Salmonella, inhibiting the growth. With the max dose of mucin we can hypothesize that some of the contributions of the salmonella not growing is suffocation which does mean that it is not an antibiotic but it could possibly be the glycoproteins which latch onto viruses.

    1. Yes, the snail slime and mucin filtrate came from different types of snails which showed us that different types of snails possibly have different amounts of antimicrobial functions in their slime. For example a possible attribute would be that one snail has more glycoproteins in their slime than another.

  1. Would different types of snails have different effectiveness when it comes to killing the bacteria? And would that be something worth investigating?

    1. I’m not sure if my reply to your other comment went through so I’ll answer both in this comment. From what we saw in the difference between the snail slime and the mucin filtrate this shows that different kinds of snails have different properties in their slime. The snail slime came from milk snails and the mucin filtrate came from a giant African snail. This could possibly mean that different snails have different amounts of compounds like glycoproteins. This would definitely be something worth investigating.

  2. What is the chemical in the snail slime that works as an antibiotic? Is that found in other mucus secretions in similar animals?

    1. Two of the main compound that could lead to antimicrobial properties are glycoproteins which are glycans attached to amino acid side chains, they play a role in virus attachment. This protein is found in a lot of animals but the ones the produce mucin hold an abundance of these proteins.

  3. Good Job! What traits of glycoprotein and mucin make it a promising antibiotic? Are there other antibiotics which use these ingredients?

    1. Thanks! Glycoproteins are found abundantly in mucin. They attach to viruses which could help create a preventative measure. They work in immune system cells to protect the cells so this would be great to help protect calls from bad bacteria. I’m not sure if any antibiotics use these in their ingredients but some do create antibiotics that work with these proteins.

  4. Is there anythi9ng that is special about the snails slime that allows it to evolve with bacteria or ensure something like snail slime wont be ineffective against bacteria.

    1. We do know that snail mucin is used a lot in beauty products to help with things like dry skin and acne. This shows that snail slime does already have a history with beating or working with bacteria. The glycoproteins in the snail slime attach to cells or viruses in the body which tells us that snail slime will either fight bacteria or help it grow so it will not be ineffective.

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