Mechanisms of Major Ampullate Silk Fiber Formation by Orb-Web-Spinning Spiders

Work, Robert W.

doi:10.2307/3226094

Cited by 40 publications

(32 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…Although spidroins are highly aggregation-prone, they are stored as a soluble dope at concentrations up to 50% (w/w) in the sac of the silk gland 3,4 . Spidroins are processed into silk fibres during passage through an elongated duct 5 . At a molecular level, during this phase transition, soluble proteins with mainly helical and random-coil structures convert into insoluble polymers dominated by b-sheets 4,6 .…”

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confidence: 99%

Sequential pH-driven dimerization and stabilization of the N-terminal domain enables rapid spider silk formation

et al. 2014

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The mechanisms controlling the conversion of spider silk proteins into insoluble fibres, which happens in a fraction of a second and in a defined region of the silk glands, are still unresolved. The N-terminal domain changes conformation and forms a homodimer when pH is lowered from 7 to 6; however, the molecular details still remain to be determined. Here we investigate site-directed mutants of the N-terminal domain from Euprosthenops australis major ampullate spidroin 1 and find that the charged residues D40, R60 and K65 mediate intersubunit electrostatic interactions. Protonation of E79 and E119 is required for structural conversions of the subunits into a dimer conformation, and subsequent protonation of E84 around pH 5.7 leads to the formation of a fully stable dimer. These residues are highly conserved, indicating that the now proposed three-step mechanism prevents premature aggregation of spidroins and enables fast formation of spider silk fibres in general.

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confidence: 99%

Sequential pH-driven dimerization and stabilization of the N-terminal domain enables rapid spider silk formation

et al. 2014

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“…This is truly an impressive feat of coordination! What little is known concerning termination of silk lines suggests (at least in the ampullate glands, which have long ducts) that termination generally occurs when there is a lack of liquid silk in the duct leading to the spigot, and the line breaks there as it is being pulled (Wilson 1962b;Work 1977). Presumably liquid silk then needs to be pushed to the tip of the spigot for the line to be reinitiated.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Possible functional significance of spigot placement on the spinnerets of spiders

Eberhard¹

2010

Journal of Arachnology

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“…When wet or in a high relative humidity atmosphere, they are subjected to a longitudinal shrinking of up to 60% of the length of the fiber concomitantly with radial swelling (about two-fold increase of the diameter). [122][123][124][125] This phenomenon, so-called supercontraction, is reminiscent of what occurs for oriented synthetic polymers above their glass transition temperature. It is due to a plasticizing effect of water molecules that insert within the hydrogen bonded polypeptide networks and reduce intermolecular interactions, thus providing polypeptide chains with mobility which in turn allows chain entropic recoil.…”

Section: Other Properties Of Silkmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spider silk as a blueprint for greener materials: a review

Lefèvre

Auger

2016

International Materials Reviews

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Spider silk exhibits remarkable properties, especially its well-known tensile performances. They rely on a complex nanostructured hierarchical organization that researches progressively elucidate. Spider silk encompasses a vast range of fibers that exhibit diverse and captivating physical and biological characteristics. The full understanding of the relation between structure and properties may lead in the future to the design of a variety of high-performance, tailored materials and devices. Reknown for being produced in mild and begnin conditions, this outstanding biological material constitutes one the more representative example of biomimetism. In addition, silk's structure is produced with limited means, i.e. low energy and relatively simple renewable constituents (silk proteins). Then, if successfully controlled and adequately transposed in biomaterials, some properties of natural silk could lead to innovative green materials that may contribute to reduce the ecological footprint of societies. In fact, striking recent advanced applications made with B. mori silk suggest that spider silk-based materials may lead to advanced resistant and functional materials, then becoming among the most promising subject of study in material science. However, several challenges have to be overcome, especially our ability to produce native-like silk, to control biomaterials' structure and properties, and to minimize their ecological footprint. This paper reviews the characteristics of spider silk that make it so attractive and that may (or may not) contribute to reduce ecological footprint of materials and the challenges in producing innovative spider silk-based materials. First, from a biomimetic perspective, the structure and models that explain the tensile resistance of natural silk are presented, followed by the state of knowledge regarding natural silk spinning process and synthetic production methods. Biocompatibility (biosafety and biofunctionality) as well as biodegradability issues are then addressed. Finally, examples of applications are reviewed. Features that may lead to the design of green materials are emphasized throughout.

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Mechanisms of Major Ampullate Silk Fiber Formation by Orb-Web-Spinning Spiders

Cited by 40 publications

References 25 publications

Sequential pH-driven dimerization and stabilization of the N-terminal domain enables rapid spider silk formation

Sequential pH-driven dimerization and stabilization of the N-terminal domain enables rapid spider silk formation

Possible functional significance of spigot placement on the spinnerets of spiders

Spider silk as a blueprint for greener materials: a review

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