The two-layer, fully biocompatible structure made from protein strands of elastin is able to contract by expending chemical energy and then reassuming its original shape.
Scientists at the University of Freiburg in Germany have created an artificial muscle made of elastin, a common animal protein. It is able to contract under the influence of temperature and acidity and is fully biocompatible. Theoretically, such muscles could find future applications in regenerative medicine, restoring fragments of irreversibly lost tissue... →
