Characterization of the Arion vulgaris pedal gland system.

The most common European gastropod species, Arion vulgaris, is one of the most troublesome pests for private garden owners and commercial agriculturists. The sticky and hard to remove secretion produced by these animals allows them to overcome most artificial and natural barriers. However, this highly adherent biopolymer has recently shown great potential for novel wound-healing applications in medicine.

The structure of the cutaneous pedal glands in the banded snail Cepaea hortensis (Müller, 1774).

Although gastropods have been crawling through the ocean and on the land for 60 million years, we still know very little about the sticky mucus produced in their foot. Most research has been focused on marine species in particular and, to a lesser extent, on the well-known terrestrial species Arion vulgaris and Cornu aspersum. Within this study, we aim to characterize the foot anatomy of a smaller representative of the family Helicidae, the banded snail Cepaea hortensis.

Snail mucus - glandular origin and composition in Helix pomatia.

Apart from their well-known culinary use, gastropod species such as Helix, which have a hydrogel-like mucus, are increasingly being exploited for cosmetic, bioengineering and medical applications. However, not only are the origin and composition of these "sticky" secretions far from being fully characterized, the number and morphology of the mucus glands involved is also uncertain. This study aims to characterize in detail the cutaneous glands of the Helix pomatia foot on morphological, histochemical and immunohistochemical levels.

Characterization of the adhesive dermal secretion of Euprymna scolopes Berry, 1913 (Cephalopoda).

Bio-adhesion is a common and crucial process in nature and is used by several different species for camouflage, prey capture, hatching or to avoid drifting. Four genera of cephalopods belonging to four different families (Euprymna, Sepiolidae; Idiosepius, Idiosepiidae; Nautilus, Nautilidae; and Sepia, Sepiidae) produce glue for temporary attachment. Euprymna species live in near-shore benthic habitats of the Indo-Pacific Ocean, are nocturnal and bury into the seafloor during the day.

Characterization of cement float buoyancy in the stalked barnacle Dosima fascicularis (Crustacea, Cirripedia).

Dosima fascicularis is the only barnacle which can drift autonomously at the water surface with a foam-like cement float. The cement secreted by the animal contains numerous gas-filled cells of different size. When several individuals share one float, their size and not their number is crucial for the production of both volume and mass of the float.