Sharks Saving Human Lives?: The Future of Antibiotic Resistance Lies in Shark Skin

Most of us have probably fallen prey to going down a rabbit hole of scrolling through skincare tips on Instagram or buying the next trendy product that promises to instantly clear acne. But what if the biggest skincare guru isn’t any influencer at all, but a creature that has been swimming around for over 400 million years, uses zero products, and also happens to be one of the most feared predators in the sea: sharks.

The Properties & Advantages of Shark Skin

What I mean by saying sharks have clear skin is that, unlike other marine animals such as whales, sea turtles, or molluscs with shells, shark skin is resistant to barnacles (Balanus glandula)—small, sticky, and, I would argue, unsightly crustaceans that glue themselves onto almost any stable surface, from the hulls of boats to living animals to underwater volcanic sites.

So what is it about sharks that makes them resistant?

Shark skin is unlike human skin, or even the scales of most fish. Sharks are covered in tiny, tooth-like structures called dermal denticles, which are actually made of the same materials as human teeth, with a hard outer layer and a strong internal core. These denticles form microscopic ridges and grooves with slightly raised, sharp edges interlocking all across the surface of the shark’s body that resemble little razors (see SEM image below). Each individual bar or diamond is approximately 16 microns in width. When the shark is in action, the surrounding water flows over these deticles, the ridges working to reduce drag and turbulence, helping sharks to swim efficiently. Simultaneously, they also make the surface extremely unfriendly to hitchhikers (bye-bye barnacles!). For bacteria, algae, barnacles, or other biofouling agents to attach, they need a stable, smooth space to live and reproduce on, which shark denticles do not accommodate. Rather than relying on chemicals or an external process to remove bacteria, shark skin utilizes an inborn structure alone to protect and keep itself clean (you can kind of think of it like armor).

SEM images of the riblet structures of shark skin surface. (Pu et al., 2016).

The Problem Today

Although modern medicine has made extreme breakthroughs in antibiotics for infections, battling harmful bacteria remains a constant challenge, with the CDC estimating that more than 2 million infections and 23,000 deaths occur each year in the United States alone. The widespread overuse of antibiotics has only made the problem worse, accelerating the rise of drug-resistant bacteria. In hospital settings, the risk is especially high: the American Chemical Society (ACS) reports that patients who are already ill or immunocompromised can develop serious infections simply just by coming into contact with contaminated surfaces like bedrails or doorknobs.

Technology Spotlight: Sharklet!

Inspired by the properties and structure of shark skin, Sharklet is a leading biomedical engineering company at the forefront of designing breakthrough medical technologies that prevent bacterial growth—without the use of harmful chemicals or antibiotics that contribute to antibiotic resistance. And of course, they’re doing this using none other than the power of biomimicry!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oBDC4hbYt3k

Sharklet produces a range of surface technologies that come as plastic sheets/films, with applications that range from everyday bacteria-resistant computer screens to medical equipment used in hospitals. In the past few years, some of their primary areas of focus have included urinary tract infections (UTIs) and respiratory diseases. They have developed products such as urinary catheters, endotracheal tubes, wound dressings, central venous catheters, and even yoga mats. Sharklet has received funding and support for these technologies from grants from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases.

“Texture can greatly influence the way biological organisms see surfaces,” says Ethan Mann, the VP of Sharklet Technologies.

Sharklet utilizes micronanopatterning to mimic the same diamond pattern of shark skin. The primary Sharklet micropattern is very small and completely invisible to the naked eye (around 3 microns tall and 2 microns wide). See the image below from Sharklet's web page:

Positive Variation of Sharklet micropattern (Protruding from the surface).

Extensive research has shown that Sharklet skin is effective at inhibiting the growth of many types of bacteria, including S. aureus, P. aeruginosa, VRE, E. coli, MRSA, and other microbial species that can cause illness and death.

Specifically, a research team in 2011 conducted an in vitro study to test the effects of the Sharklet surface to stop bacterial colonization and migration of uropathogenic Escherichia coli from forming on urinary catheters. They tested three variations of the Sharklet pattern: first, the Positive Sharklet 2×2 (protruding features with 2 micron width and 2 micron spacing); next, the inverse Sharklet (ISK) 2×2 (recessed features with 2 micron width and 2 micron spacing); and lastly, the positive Sharklet 10×2 (protruding features with 10 micron width and 2 micron spacing).

I thought this image comparing the bacterial formation on the different surfaces was super cool and informative, so I hope you enjoy!

"Scanning electron microscope micrographs from one growth assay in artificial urine media after 24 hours: (a) positive Sharklet, (b) inverse Sharklet, (c) Sharklet 10×2, (d) smooth. Scale bar=20 μm in all images; Escherichia coli strain ATCC #700336 is visible as individual cells or as colonies on the surfaces." (Reddy et al., 2011).

As shown evidently in the SEM images above, all three Sharklet surface patterns made it much harder for this strain of E. coli to stick and grow compared to smooth surfaces. Across different growth conditions and over time, the bacteria (shown as lighter colored clumps_ covered less surface area and formed much smaller colonies on Sharklet materials. The ISK pattern (b) was the most effective at creating unfriendly environments for bacterial growth, with an over 80% reduction in bacterial colony size compared to the smooth surface (d). While some counting methods showed more variability, the overall trend was clear: every Sharklet pattern was promising and effective. On average, bacterial colonies were around 75–80% smaller on Sharklet surfaces.

Who knew that sharks could be capable of saving human lives?

Want to keep exploring? Check out the Sharklet website here - https://www.sharklet.com/technology-overview/

Additional references:

1] American Chemical Society. “Attacking Bacteria with Shark Skin–Inspired Surfaces.” June 13, 2018. https://www.acs.org/pressroom/presspacs/2018/acs-presspac-june-13-2018/attacking-bacteria-with-shark-skin-inspired-surfaces.html.

2] Arisoy, Feyza Dundar, Kristopher W. Kolewe, Benjamin Homyak, Irene S. Kurtz, Jessica D. Schiffman, and James J. Watkins. “Bioinspired Photocatalytic Shark-Skin Surfaces with Antibacterial and Antifouling Activity via Nanoimprint Lithography.” ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces (May 23, 2018).

3] "Imitation Shark Skin Could Prevent Infections." National Institute of Health SEED. October 1, 2025. https://seed.nih.gov/portfolio/stories/Sharklet.

4]Pu, Xia & Li, Guangji & Huang, Hanlu. (2016). Preparation, anti-biofouling and drag-reduction properties of a biomimetic shark skin surface. Biology Open. 5. 389-396. 10.1242/bio.016899.

5] Reddy ST, Chung KK, McDaniel CJ, Darouiche RO, Landman J, Brennan AB. Micropatterned surfaces for reducing the risk of catheter-associated urinary tract infection: an in vitro study on the effect of sharklet micropatterned surfaces to inhibit bacterial colonization and migration of uropathogenic Escherichia coli. J Endourol. 2011 Sep;25(9):1547-52. doi: 10.1089/end.2010.0611. Epub 2011 Aug 5. PMID: 21819223; PMCID: PMC3168968.