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.

动物和植物生产的粘合剂为工程和消费者应用提供了新颖的材料。这些生物如何产生和使用其生物粘合剂是了解它们如何机械功能以及它们如何发展的关键。一小组蜘蛛生产出一种非凡的胶水 - 涂抹时与水样的流动性和橡胶韧性的异常组合。预计这种胶水对于这些蜘蛛如何捕获飞蛾至关重要，而其他蜘蛛几乎可以做到。在这项研究中，将将胶水中胶水的功能和遗传学与未捕获飞蛾的蜘蛛胶水进行比较。胶水的强度和韧性将在现场和实验室中使用专用的测试机进行测量。将发现胶基因的位置和序列以及这些基因被激活的组织。一个新的计算机模型将解释胶水在几秒钟内如何从流动液体变为坚韧的粘合剂，以及如何使胶水粘在飞蛾尺度上。这项研究将部分由研究人员指导的一年和两年学徒的本科生和高中生进行，以为STEM职业提供培训。该团队的综合研究工作将为推进具有新型机械性能的自然生产材料的工程粘合剂的开发奠定基础。对生物材料的全面理解应包括其机械行为在其有机，生态和进化环境中。生物固定剂，例如蜘蛛产生的胶水，是这种研究类型的出色系统，因为在生物体的生态环境中可以直接观察到它们的机械行为。对于大多数轨道编织蜘蛛而言，一种绝对的猎物是难以捉摸的：飞蛾。但是飞蛾被Cyrtarachnine蜘蛛捕获。他们使用具有低粘度的捕获胶，并且在与飞蛾接触时具有最高的粘合强度和韧性。该项目检验了以下假设：这种捕获胶是Cyrtarachninae捕获飞蛾的关键适应。胶水的扩散速率和范围将通过高速微观评估来测试竞争的微流体模型。胶水的粘合性行为，捕获过程的第二步，被量化为粘合强度（N）和粘合韧性（NM-2），将在田间和实验室中使用拉力张力测试进行测量。将使用基因组，转录组和蛋白质组学方法的组合来鉴定胶蛋白的基因。最后，将映射基因组和机械性状在Cyrtarachninae的系统发育以及已被重建的假设共同祖先的状态。由于早期和持续的研究促进了学生在STEM职业中的保留和承诺，因此在这项研究的每个阶段，高中和大学生将成为长期的学徒，在调查人员的直接监督下参与了一到两年的密集研究培训。这项奖项反映了NSF的立法使命，并通过评估通过基金会的智力优点进行了评估，并被认为是PRICED SPARTICATION和BRODITIA的支持。

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.