Global warming creates conditions suitable for jellyfish life. Sudden blooms of great abundance are getting worldwide attention and have many negative effects on humans. They are causing economic damage in the fields of tourism, fishing, aquaculture, and nuclear plants. Jellyfish mucus, a glycoprotein polymer, has many biotechnological applications. In the master thesis we studied mucus of jellyfish Rhizostoma pulma. We described its properties and used mukus as a flocculant in the purification processes of water contaminated with microplastics. We tested its ability to bond to different types of microplastics and studied factors that influenced its degradation. We have found that mucus binds polystyrene particles. However, it did not bind polyethylene particles. Particle binding increased structure of the mucus, which was reflected in increased viscosity. Chemically degraded mucus was not capable of binding polystyrene particles. The mucus was not microbiologically degradable under our growing conditions.
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