“Sticky invasion” – the physical properties of Plantago lanceolata L. seed mucilage

Scholarly Works

• Gorges, H.; Brinkhaus, M.; Sator, P.; Büscher, T. H.; Gorb, S. N. Structural and biomechanical adaptations of fruits and seeds in Ecballium elaterium (Cucurbitaceae) for seed dispersal. npj Science of Plants 2025, 1. doi:10.1038/s44383-025-00003-7
• Wichai, K.; Deng, X.; Gorges, H.; Gorb, S. N.; Müller-Plathe, F. Structural and Adhesive Properties of Cellulosic Mucilage: A Molecular-Level Investigation. Biomacromolecules 2025, 26, 5258–5268. doi:10.1021/acs.biomac.5c00767
• Rasmussen, M. H.; Bregnhøj, M.; Kreitschitz, A.; Gorb, S. N.; Weidner, T. Adhesion of the mucilage envelope of Ocimum basilicum seeds probed by sum frequency generation spectroscopy. Soft matter 2025, 21, 1037–1044. doi:10.1039/d4sm01057d
• Bhaskaran, K.; Saveri, P.; Deshpande, A. P.; Varughese, S. Role of microstructure of cellulosic mucilage in seed anchorage: A mechanical interpretation of antitelechory in plants. Plant and Soil 2025, 513, 401–416. doi:10.1007/s11104-024-07192-7
• Gorges, H.; Serbe, E.; Kovalev, A.; Gorb, S. N. The influence of pectins and cellulose fibers in the mechanical and adhesive properties of seed mucilage. Journal of experimental botany 2025, 76, 2252–2263. doi:10.1093/jxb/eraf014
• Kreitschitz, A.; Gorb, S. N. Natural nanofibers embedded in the seed mucilage envelope: composite hydrogels with specific adhesive and frictional properties. Beilstein journal of nanotechnology 2024, 15, 1603–1618. doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.126
• Wichai, K.; Gorges, H.; Gorb, S. N.; Müller-Plathe, F. Pectin Mucilage Adhesion on a Flat Substrate: A Molecular Simulation Approach to Plant-Seed Adhesion. Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids 2024, 40, 26760–26770. doi:10.1021/acs.langmuir.4c03962
• Kreitschitz, A.; Haase, E.; Gorb, S. Removal of the mucilage reduces intact seed passage through the digestive system of birds. Seed Science Research 2024, 34, 177–185. doi:10.1017/s0960258524000187
• Mohammed, S.; Mummenhoff, K. Functional divergence exists in mucilage-mediated seed dispersal, but not in germination of myxospermic Lepidium campestre and Lepidium draba (Brassicaceae). Acta Oecologica 2024, 125, 104042. doi:10.1016/j.actao.2024.104042
• Bhaskaran, K.; Saveri, P.; Deshpande, A. P.; Varughese, S. Role of microstructure of cellulosic mucilage in seed anchorage: A mechanical interpretation. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory 2024. doi:10.1101/2024.01.08.574694
• Mohammed, S.; Mummenhoff, K. Functional Divergence Exists in Mucilage-Mediated Seed Dispersal, But Not in Germination of Myxospermic Lepidium Campestre and Lepidium Draba (Brassicaceae). Elsevier BV 2024. doi:10.2139/ssrn.4877367
• Stessman, M. E.; Sharma, A.; Barber, G.; LoPresti, E. F. Seed mucilage as a defense against granivory is influenced by substrate characters. Oecologia 2023, 203, 139–149. doi:10.1007/s00442-023-05456-0
• Kreitschitz, A.; Gorb, S. N. Mucilage-based part of dual adhesive system of Commicarpus helenae anthocarp. South African Journal of Botany 2023, 160, 376–383. doi:10.1016/j.sajb.2023.07.030
• Büscher, T. H.; Gorb, S. N. Convergent Evolution of Adhesive Properties in Leaf Insect Eggs and Plant Seeds: Cross-Kingdom Bioinspiration. Biomimetics (Basel, Switzerland) 2022, 7, 173. doi:10.3390/biomimetics7040173
• Iwanycki Ahlstrand, N.; Gopalakrishnan, S.; Vieira, F. G.; Bieker, V. C.; Meudt, H. M.; Dunbar-Co, S.; Rothfels, C. J.; Martinez-Swatson, K. A.; Maldonado, C.; Hassemer, G.; Shipunov, A.; Bowers, M. D.; Gardner, E.; Xu, M.; Ghorbani, A.; Amano, M.; Grace, O. M.; Pringle, J. S.; Bishop, M.; Manzanilla, V.; Cotrim, H.; Blaney, S.; Zubov, D.; Choi, H.-K.; Yesil, Y.; Bennett, B.; Vimolmangkang, S.; El-Seedi, H. R.; Staub, P. O.; Li, Z.; Boldbaatar, D.; Hislop, M.; Caddy, L. J.; Muasya, A. M.; Saslis-Lagoudakis, C. H.; Gilbert, M. T. P.; Zerega, N. J. C.; Rønsted, N. Travel Tales of a Worldwide Weed: Genomic Signatures of Plantago major L. Reveal Distinct Genotypic Groups With Links to Colonial Trade Routes. Frontiers in plant science 2022, 13, 838166. doi:10.3389/fpls.2022.838166
• Abe, N.; Koyama, K.; Okamoto, A.; Katayama, K.; Kato, Y.; Mimura, N.; Okoshi, S.; Tanaka, Y. Seed Mucilage Promotes Dispersal of Plantago asiatica Seeds by Facilitating Attachment to Shoes. Sustainability 2022, 14, 6909. doi:10.3390/su14116909
• Dybka-Stępień, K.; Otlewska, A.; Góźdź, P.; Piotrowska, M. The Renaissance of Plant Mucilage in Health Promotion and Industrial Applications: A Review. Nutrients 2021, 13, 3354. doi:10.3390/nu13103354
• Kreitschitz, A.; Kovalev, A.; Gorb, S. N. Plant Seed Mucilage as a Glue: Adhesive Properties of Hydrated and Dried-in-Contact Seed Mucilage of Five Plant Species. International journal of molecular sciences 2021, 22, 1443. doi:10.3390/ijms22031443
• Kreitschitz, A.; Haase, E.; Gorb, S. N. The role of mucilage envelope in the endozoochory of selected plant taxa. Die Naturwissenschaften 2020, 108, 2. doi:10.1007/s00114-020-01709-7
• Büscher, T. H.; Lohar, R.; Kaul, M.-C.; Gorb, S. N. Multifunctional Adhesives on the Eggs of the Leaf Insect Phyllium philippinicum (Phasmatodea: Phylliidae): Solvent Influence and Biomimetic Implications. Biomimetics (Basel, Switzerland) 2020, 5, 66. doi:10.3390/biomimetics5040066

Explore citations to this article at