Using Furarone Paints as an Anti-Foulant

The red alga Delisea pulchra has been a model organism for understanding the ecological role of secondary metabolites as natural antifoulants.
Furanones are produced by the plant and delivered to the surface at a concentration where they regulate bacterial colonisation and the settlement of epibiota.
This biological understanding has led to the application of furanones as inhibitors of bacterial- and macro-fouling. Furanones inhibit bacterial colonisation and biofilm development through interference with a key bacterial quorum-sensing pathway, the acylated homoserine lactone regulatory system in Gram-negative bacteria.

Laboratory antifouling assays have been used to identify effective and safe furanone-analogues while field trials of furanones incorporated into coatings and polymers demonstrate efficacies similar to commercial biocides. Further development is required to control the release of compounds from suitable carriers to extend coating/polymer lifespans. This review summarises the extensive work on furanones focusing on their natural and applied antifouling activities.

http://lib.bioinfo.pl/pmid:16805438

Barnacles cause corrosion and make ships heavier and harder to steer. Antifouling paints that contain tin or copper stop barnacles from attaching and leach metals into the sea and kill many nontarget organisms. An antifouling chemical made by Delisea pulchra blocks bacterial communication systems and prevents bacterial biofilms from developing on its surface. This then stops barnacles from attaching. The seaweed metabolite can be used to replace the toxic chemicals in any environment that can be submerged in an aqueous environment.

http://www.babs.unsw.edu.au/about/centres/cmbb_biofouling.html

Tags: Anti-fouling, bio-degradable, Furarone paints
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