{"id":4781,"date":"2019-03-07T18:09:26","date_gmt":"2019-03-07T18:09:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/tiered-mentoring\/?p=4781"},"modified":"2022-10-07T18:10:05","modified_gmt":"2022-10-07T18:10:05","slug":"hidden-link-between-protein-structure-and-mechanical-properties-of-the-worlds-toughest-spider-silk","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/tiered-mentoring\/2019\/03\/07\/hidden-link-between-protein-structure-and-mechanical-properties-of-the-worlds-toughest-spider-silk\/","title":{"rendered":"Hidden link between protein structure and mechanical properties of the world\u2019s toughest spider silk"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" style=\"text-align: center\"><span style=\"color: #ff0000\">[Past Projects]<\/span><\/h3>\r\n<h3>Dr. Todd Blackledge, Dr. Ali Dhinojwala, Angela Alicea-Serrano and K Zin Htut<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator is-style-wide\" \/>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1915\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/tiered-mentoring\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1447\/2019\/03\/Pic-1024x426.png\" alt=\"\" \/><figcaption>Buehler et al. NanoWerk. 2010; Zhang and Tso et al. Extracellular Composite Matrices in Arthropods, 2016, Springer, First Edition; Angnarrson et al. Plos One. 2010, 5, 9, 1-8.\r\n\r\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<strong>Research Description<\/strong>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nSpider dragline silk is the toughest biomaterial in nature; spider silk is ounce for ounce tougher than steel and the Kevalr in bullet resistant armor. Silk properties and composition inspire genetically engineered biomaterialssuch as medical sutures, artificial tendons and ligaments, which must be extensible and strong but also light. These future applications of spider silk require a clear understanding of protein structure and its connection with the mechanical properties of biomaterials.\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nWe are investigating the world\u2019s toughest dragline silk from Darwin\u2019s bark spider, which spins giant orb webs across the rivers of Madagascar suspended on silk lines up to 80 feet long. We are combing nanotensile testing of silk performance with cutting edge Raman laser spectroscopy techniques to understand how specific aspects of protein structure such as alpha helix and beta sheet content changed during the evolution of Darwin\u2019s bark spider\u2019s \u201csuper silk\u201d.\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1923\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/tiered-mentoring\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1447\/2019\/03\/DSC_0071-1024x685.jpg\" alt=\"\" \/><figcaption>Obtaining silk from a Black Widow spider<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<strong>Benefits of working in the spider lab<\/strong>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\r\n \t<li>Hands-on experience in interdisciplinary research.<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Introduction to cutting edge technology in spectroscopy techniques for characterization of biomaterials at the molecular level (like proteins and lipids).<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Use of sophisticated nano-tensile tester for characterization of mechanical properties of biomaterials (like silks, bones, skin and muscles).<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Participation in lab meetings and experience presenting research at a professional setting.<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Experience analyzing data and using statistics.<\/li>\r\n \t<li>High chance of publication opportunities.<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Experience handling spiders and collecting of spider silk and other biomaterials.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<strong>Example of publications by undergraduates in the lab<\/strong>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\r\n \t<li>Amarpuri G*, Chaurasai V**, Jain D*, Blackledge TA &amp; Dhinojwala A. 2015. <strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.nature.com\/srep\/2015\/150312\/srep09030\/pdf\/srep09030.pdf\">Ubiquitous distribution of salts and proteins in spider glue enhances spider silk adhesion. Scientific Reports. 5: 9030.<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\r\n \t<li>Sahni V.*, Miyoshi T., Chen K.**, Jain D.*, Blamires S.J., Blackledge T.A. &amp; Dhinojwala A. 2014. <strong><a href=\"http:\/\/gozips.uakron.edu\/~tab27\/PDFs\/Biomacromolecules_2015_glycoprotein_solvation.pdf\">Direct solvation of glycoproteins by salts in spider silk glues enhances adhesion and helps to explain the evolution of modern spider orb webs. Biomacromolecules 15:1225-1232.<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\r\n \t<li>Sensenig A., Kelly S.P.**, Lorentz K.A.**, Lesher B.** &amp; Blackledge T.A. 2013. <strong><a href=\"http:\/\/gozips.uakron.edu\/~tab27\/PDFs\/J_Exper_Biol_2013_fast_webs.pdf\">Mechanical performance of spider orb webs is tuned for high-speed prey. Journal of Experimental Biology. 216: 3388-3394.<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\r\n \t<li>Kelly S.P.**, Sensenig A., Lorentz K.A.** &amp; Blackledge T.A. 2011. <strong><a href=\"http:\/\/gozips.uakron.edu\/~tab27\/PDFs\/Zoology_2011_energy_damping.pdf\">Damping capacity is evolutionarily conserved in the radial silk of orb-weaving spiders. Zoology. 114: 233-238.<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"457\" height=\"411\" class=\"wp-image-1939\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/tiered-mentoring\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1447\/2019\/03\/pic3.jpg\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/tiered-mentoring\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1447\/2019\/03\/pic3.jpg 457w, https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/tiered-mentoring\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1447\/2019\/03\/pic3.jpg?resize=300,270 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 457px) 100vw, 457px\" \/><figcaption>Over 9 miles of silk from the Golden Orb Weaver spider: Nephila clavipes. The silk was used as a rope to be tested in the popular show Myth Busters Jr.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator is-style-wide\" \/>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<strong>For more information visit: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/blackledgelab\">https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/blackledgelab<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.blackledgelab.com\/\">https:\/\/www.blackledgelab.com\/<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/dhinojwala\/\">https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/dhinojwala\/<\/a><\/strong>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[Past Projects] Dr. Todd Blackledge, Dr. Ali Dhinojwala, Angela Alicea-Serrano and K Zin Htut Research Description Spider dragline silk is the toughest biomaterial in nature; spider silk is ounce for ounce tougher than steel and the Kevalr in bullet resistant armor. Silk properties and composition inspire genetically engineered biomaterialssuch as medical sutures, artificial tendons and &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/tiered-mentoring\/2019\/03\/07\/hidden-link-between-protein-structure-and-mechanical-properties-of-the-worlds-toughest-spider-silk\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Hidden link between protein structure and mechanical properties of the world\u2019s toughest spider silk<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4695,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[125789],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4781","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-past-projects"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/tiered-mentoring\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4781","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/tiered-mentoring\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/tiered-mentoring\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/tiered-mentoring\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4695"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/tiered-mentoring\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4781"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/tiered-mentoring\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4781\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4782,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/tiered-mentoring\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4781\/revisions\/4782"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/tiered-mentoring\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4781"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/tiered-mentoring\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4781"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uakron.edu\/tiered-mentoring\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4781"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}