“Molecular Velcro” May Lead to Cost-Effective Alternatives to Natural Antibodies | Biomimicry | Scoop.it

"Taking inspiration from the human immune system, researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have created a new material that can be programmed to identify an endless variety of molecules. The new material resembles tiny sheets of Velcro, each just one-hundred nanometers across. But instead of securing your sneakers, this molecular Velcro mimics the way natural antibodies recognize viruses and toxins, and could lead to a new class of biosensors."