Collaborative Research: RUI: Behavior and Evolution of the Novel Self-Curing Bioadhesive of Moth-Specialist Spiders

合作研究：RUI：蛾类蜘蛛新型自固化生物粘合剂的行为和进化

• 批准号: 2031962
• 负责人: John Long
• 金额: $ 34.93万
• 依托单位: Vassar College
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2020
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2020-11-01 至 2024-10-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2031962&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; RUI; Behavior; Evolution

Adhesives produced by animals and plants provide novel materials for engineering and consumer applications. How these organisms produce and use their biological adhesives is the key to understanding how they function mechanically and how they have evolved. An extraordinary glue -- with an unusual combination of water-like fluidity when applied and rubbery toughness when set -- is produced by a small group of spiders. This glue is predicted to be critical to how these spiders catch flying moths, which few other spiders can do. In this research, the function and genetics of glues in moth-catchers will be compared to those in glues of spiders that don’t catch moths. The glues’ strength and toughness will be measured in the field and in the lab using a purpose-built testing machine. The location and sequence of glue genes, and the tissues where these genes are activated, will be uncovered. A new computer model will explain how the glue changes from a flowing liquid to a tough adhesive in seconds, and how this allows the glue to stick to moth scales. This research will be conducted, in part, by undergraduates and high school students carrying out one- and two-year apprenticeships mentored by the investigators to provide training for STEM careers. The team’s integrated research efforts will lay groundwork for advancing development of engineered adhesives from naturally produced materials with novel mechanical properties. A comprehensive understanding of a biomaterial should include its mechanical behavior in its organismal, ecological, and evolutionary context. Bioadhesives, such as the glues produced by spiders, are excellent systems for this type of investigation because their mechanical behavior is directly observable in the organism's ecological context. For most orb-weaving spiders, one type of abundant prey is elusive: moths. But moths are captured by cyrtarachnine spiders. They use a capture glue that possesses low viscosity and when in contact with moths has the highest adhesive strength and toughness among spider glues measured among spider glues. This project tests the hypothesis that this capture glue is the key adaptation of the Cyrtarachninae for catching moths. The glue’s rate and extent of spreading will be measured with high-speed micro-videography to test competing microfluidic models. Adhesive behavior of the glue, the second step in the capture process, quantified as adhesive strength (N) and adhesive toughness (Nm-2), will be measured in the field and in the lab using pull-off tension tests. Genes for the glue proteins will be identified using a combination of genomic, transcriptomic, and proteomic approaches. Finally, genomic and mechanical traits will be mapped onto the phylogeny of the Cyrtarachninae and the states of the hypothetical common ancestor reconstructed. Because early and sustained research fosters retention and commitment of students in STEM careers, in each stage of this research, high school and college students will become long-term apprentices, participating for one or two years of intensive research training under direct supervision of the investigators.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

由动物和植物产生的粘合剂为工程和消费应用提供了新型材料。这些生物体如何生产和使用其生物粘合剂是了解它们如何机械运作以及如何进化的关键。一小群蜘蛛生产出一种非凡的胶水，它在涂抹时具有水般的流动性，在凝固时具有橡胶般的韧性。据预测，这种胶水对于这些蜘蛛如何捕捉飞蛾至关重要，而其他蜘蛛很少能做到这一点。在这项研究中，飞蛾捕手的胶水的功能和遗传学将与不捕飞蛾的蜘蛛的胶水进行比较。胶水的强度和韧性将使用专用测试机在现场和实验室进行测量。胶基因的位置和序列以及这些基因被激活的组织将被揭示。一种新的计算机模型将解释胶水如何在几秒钟内从流动液体变成坚韧的粘合剂，以及如何使胶水粘在飞蛾鳞片上。这项研究将部分由本科生和高中生进行，他们在研究人员的指导下进行一年和两年的学徒期，为 STEM 职业提供培训。该团队的综合研究工作将为推进利用具有新颖机械性能的天然材料开发工程粘合剂奠定基础。对生物材料的全面理解应包括其在有机体、生态和进化背景下的机械行为。生物粘合剂，例如蜘蛛产生的胶水，是此类研究的绝佳系统，因为它们的机械行为可以在生物体的生态环境中直接观察到。对于大多数圆球蜘蛛来说，一种丰富的猎物是难以捉摸的：飞蛾。但飞蛾会被二环蜘蛛捕获。他们使用的捕获胶具有低粘度，当与飞蛾接触时，在蜘蛛胶中测量的蜘蛛胶中具有最高的粘合强度和韧性。该项目测试了这样一种假设，即这种捕获胶是 Cyrtarachninae 捕捉飞蛾的关键适应性。胶水的扩散速度和程度将通过高速微摄像进行测量，以测试竞争的微流体模型。胶水的粘合行为是捕获过程的第二步，量化为粘合强度 (N) 和粘合韧性 (Nm-2)，将在现场和实验室中使用拉力测试进行测量。胶蛋白的基因将通过基因组学、转录组学和蛋白质组学方法的组合来鉴定。最后，基因组和机械特征将被映射到 Cyrtarachninae 的系统发育和重建的假设共同祖先的状态上。由于早期和持续的研究可以促进学生对 STEM 职业的保留和投入，因此在这项研究的每个阶段，高中生和大学生将成为长期学徒，在研究人员的直接监督下参加一到两年的强化研究培训。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

项目成果

Connecting materials, performance and evolution: a case study of the glue of moth-catching spiders (Cyrtarachninae)

• DOI: 10.1242/jeb.243271
• 发表时间: 2022-03-01
• 期刊: JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL BIOLOGY
• 影响因子: 2.8
• 作者: Diaz, Candido, Jr.;Baker, Richard H.;Hayashi, Cheryl Y.
• 通讯作者: Hayashi, Cheryl Y.