Molecular Changes in Spider Viscid Glue As a Function of Relative Humidity Revealed Using Infrared Spectroscopy

Spider aggregate glue can absorb moisture from the atmosphere to reduce its viscosity and become tacky. The viscosity at which glue adhesion is maximized is remarkably similar across spider species, even though that viscosity is achieved at very different relative humidity (RH) values matching their diverse habitats. However, the molecular changes in the protein structure and the bonding state of water (both referred to here as molecular structure) with respect to the changes in RH are not known. We use attenuated total reflectance-infrared (ATR-IR) spectroscopy to probe the changes in the molecular structure of glue as a function of RH for three spider species from different habitats. We find that the glue retains bound water at lower RH and absorbs liquid-like water at higher RH. The absorption of liquid-like water at high RH plasticizes the glue and explains the decrease in glue viscosity. The changes to protein conformations as a function RH are either subtle or not detectable by IR spectroscopy. Importantly, the molecular changes are reversible over multiple cycles of RH change. Further, separation of glue constituents results in a different humidity response as compared to pristine glue, supporting the standing hypothesis that the glue constituents have a synergistic association that makes spider glue a functional adhesive. The results presented in this study provide further insights into the mechanism of the humidity-responsive adhesion of spider glue.

Toward Spider Glue: Long Read Scaffolding for Extreme Length and Repetitious Silk Family Genes AgSp1 and AgSp2 with Insights into Functional Adaptation

An individual orb weaving spider can spin up to seven different types of silk, each with unique functions and material properties. The capture spiral silk of classic two-dimensional aerial orb webs is coated with an amorphous glue that functions to retain prey that get caught in a web. This unique modified silk is partially comprised of spidroins (spider fibroins) encoded by two members of the silk gene family. The glue differs from solid silk fibers as it is a viscoelastic, amorphic, wet material that is responsive to environmental conditions. Most spidroins are encoded by extremely large, highly repetitive genes that cannot be sequenced using short read technology alone, as the repetitive regions are longer than read length. We sequenced for the first time the complete genomic Aggregate Spidroin 1 (AgSp1) and Aggregate Spidroin 2 (AgSp2) glue genes of orb weaving spider Argiope trifasciata using error-prone long reads to scaffold for high accuracy short reads. The massive coding sequences are 42,270 bp (AgSp1) and 20,526 bp (AgSp2) in length, the largest silk genes currently described. The majority of the predicted amino acid sequence of AgSp1 consists of two similar but distinct motifs that are repeated ∼40 times each, while AgSp2 contains ∼48 repetitions of an AgSp1-similar motif, interspersed by regions high in glutamine. Comparisons of AgSp repetitive motifs from orb web and cobweb spiders show regions of strict conservation followed by striking diversification. Glues from these two spider families have evolved contrasting material properties in adhesion (stickiness), extensibility (stretchiness), and elasticity (the ability of the material to resume its native shape), which we link to mechanisms established for related silk genes in the same family. Full-length aggregate spidroin sequences from diverse species with differing material characteristics will provide insights for designing tunable bio-inspired adhesives for a variety of unique purposes.

Hygroscopic compounds in spider aggregate glue remove interfacial water to maintain adhesion in humid conditions

Adhesion in humid environments is fundamentally challenging because of the presence of interfacial bound water. Spiders often hunt in wet habitats and overcome this challenge using sticky aggregate glue droplets whose adhesion is resistant to interfacial failure under humid conditions. The mechanism by which spider aggregate glue avoids interfacial failure in humid environments is still unknown. Here, we investigate the mechanism of aggregate glue adhesion by using interface-sensitive spectroscopy in conjunction with infrared spectroscopy. We demonstrate that glycoproteins act as primary binding agents at the interface. As humidity increases, we observe reversible changes in the interfacial secondary structure of glycoproteins. Surprisingly, we do not observe liquid-like water at the interface, even though liquid-like water increases inside the bulk with increasing humidity. We hypothesize that the hygroscopic compounds in aggregate glue sequester interfacial water. Using hygroscopic compounds to sequester interfacial water provides a novel design principle for developing water-resistant synthetic adhesives.

Spider aggregate glue avoids failure in humid environments but the fundamental mechanism behind it is still unknown. Here, the authors demonstrate that humidity-dependent structural changes of glycoproteins and sequestering of liquid water by low molecular mass compounds prevents adhesion failure of the glue in humid environments.

Fitness consequences of plasticity in an extended phenotype

Like regular phenotypes, extended phenotypes have demonstrable fitness advantages and their properties may vary plastically across environments. However, the fitness advantages of plasticity are only known for a select few extended phenotypes. It is known that the form and functions of spider orb webs can be manipulated by laboratory experiments. For instance, the physical and chemical properties of the spiral and gluey silks vary in property as protein intake varies. Orb web spiders thus represent good models for extended phenotypic plasticity studies. We performed experiments manipulating the protein intake of two vertically aligned orb web building spiders to determine whether variations in the chemical and physical properties of their spiral and gluey silk affect prey retention in their webs. We found in both spider species that individuals deprived of protein had a greater gluey silk glycoprotein core volume, and this correlated strongly with spiral thread stickiness and increased prey retention by the webs. Moreover, we found strong positive correlations between glue droplet volume and glycoprotein core volume for spiders in the protein-deprived treatment, but weaker correlations for protein-fed spiders. We interpreted these findings as the spiders investing more in glycoprotein when nutrient deprived. We attribute the associated increase in prey retention capacity as a fitness consequence of plasticity in the spiral properties.

Adhesion modulation using glue droplet spreading in spider capture silk

Orb web spiders use sticky capture spiral silk to retain prey in webs. Capture spiral silk is composed of an axial fibre of flagelliform silk covered with glue droplets that are arranged in a beads-on-a-string morphology that allows multiple droplets to simultaneously extend and resist pull off. Previous studies showed that the adhesion of capture silk is responsive to environmental humidity, increasing up to an optimum humidity that varied among different spider species. The maximum adhesion was hypothesized to occur when the viscoelasticity of the glue optimized contributions from glue spreading and bulk cohesion. In this study, we show how glue droplet shape during peeling contributes significantly to capture silk adhesion. Both overspreading and underspreading of glue droplets reduces adhesion through changes in crack propagation and failure regime. Understanding the mechanism of stimuli-responsive adhesion of spider capture silk will lead to new designs for smarter adhesives.

Spider Silk Peptide Is a Compact, Linear Nanospring Ideal for Intracellular Tension Sensing

Recent development and applications of calibrated, fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET)-based tension sensors have led to a new understanding of single molecule mechanotransduction in a number of biological systems. To expand the range of accessible forces, we systematically measured FRET versus force trajectories for 25, 40, and 50 amino acid peptide repeats derived from spider silk. Single molecule fluorescence-force spectroscopy showed that the peptides behaved as linear springs instead of the nonlinear behavior expected for a disordered polymer. Our data are consistent with a compact, rodlike structure that measures 0.26 nm per 5 amino acid repeat that can stretch by 500% while maintaining linearity, suggesting that the remarkable elasticity of spider silk proteins may in part derive from the properties of individual chains. We found the shortest peptide to have the widest range of force sensitivity: between 2 pN and 11 pN. Live cell imaging of the three tension sensor constructs inserted into vinculin showed similar force values around 2.4 pN. We also provide a lookup table for force versus intracellular FRET for all three constructs.

Diet-induced covariation between architectural and physicochemical plasticity in an extended phenotype

The adaptive benefits of extended phenotypic plasticity are imprecisely defined due to a paucity of experiments examining traits that are manipulable and measurable across environments. Spider webs are often used as models to explore the adaptive benefits of variations in extended phenotypes across environments. Nonetheless, our understanding of the adaptive nature of the plastic responses of spider webs is impeded when web architectures and silk physicochemical properties appear to co-vary. An opportunity to examine this co-variation is presented by modifying prey items while measuring web architectures and silk physiochemical properties. Here we performed two experiments to assess the nature of the association between web architectures and gluey silk properties when the orb web spider Argiope keyserlingi was fed a diet that varied in either mass and energy or prey size and feeding frequency. We found web architectures and gluey silk physicochemical properties to co-vary across treatments in both experiments. Specifically, web capture area co-varied with gluey droplet morphometrics, thread stickiness and salt concentrations when prey mass and energy were manipulated, and spiral spacing co-varied with gluey silk salt concentrations when prey size and feeding frequency were manipulated. We explained our results as A. keyserlingi plastically shifting its foraging strategy as multiple prey parameters simultaneously varied. We confirmed and extended previous work by showing that spiders use a variety of prey cues to concurrently adjust web and silk traits across different feeding regimes.

Nutrient deprivation induces property variations in spider gluey silk

Understanding the mechanisms facilitating property variability in biological adhesives may promote biomimetic innovations. Spider gluey silks such as the spiral threads in orb webs and the gumfoot threads in cobwebs, both of which comprise of an axial thread coated by glue, are biological adhesives that have variable physical and chemical properties. Studies show that the physical and chemical properties of orb web gluey threads change when spiders are deprived of food. It is, however, unknown whether gumfoot threads undergo similar property variations when under nutritional stress. Here we tested whether protein deprivation induces similar variations in spiral and gumfoot thread morphology and stickiness. We manipulated protein intake for the orb web spider Nephila clavipes and the cobweb spider Latrodectus hesperus and measured the diameter, glue droplet volume, number of droplets per mm, axial thread width, thread stickiness and adhesive energy of their gluey silks. We found that the gluey silks of both species were stickier when the spiders were deprived of protein than when the spiders were fed protein. In N. clavipes a concomitant increase in glue droplet volume was found. Load-extension curves showed that protein deprivation induced glue property variations independent of the axial thread extensions in both species. We predicted that changes in salt composition of the glues were primarily responsible for the changes in stickiness of the silks, although changes in axial thread properties might also contribute. We, additionally, showed that N. clavipes' glue changes color under protein deprivation, probably as a consequence of changes to its biochemical composition.

Nephila clavipes Flagelliform silk-like GGX motifs contribute to extensibility and spacer motifs contribute to strength in synthetic spider silk fibers

Flagelliform spider silk is the most extensible silk fiber produced by orb weaver spiders, though not as strong as the dragline silk of the spider. The motifs found in the core of the Nephila clavipes flagelliform Flag protein are GGX, spacer, and GPGGX. Flag does not contain the polyalanine motif known to provide the strength of dragline silk. To investigate the source of flagelliform fiber strength, four recombinant proteins were produced containing variations of the three core motifs of the Nephila clavipes flagelliform Flag protein that produces this type of fiber. The as-spun fibers were processed in 80% aqueous isopropanol using a standardized process for all four fiber types, which produced improved mechanical properties. Mechanical testing of the recombinant proteins determined that the GGX motif contributes extensibility and the spacer motif contributes strength to the recombinant fibers. Recombinant protein fibers containing the spacer motif were stronger than the proteins constructed without the spacer that contained only the GGX motif or the combination of the GGX and GPGGX motifs. The mechanical and structural X-ray diffraction analysis of the recombinant fibers provide data that suggests a functional role of the spacer motif that produces tensile strength, though the spacer motif is not clearly defined structurally. These results indicate that the spacer is likely a primary contributor of strength, with the GGX motif supplying mobility to the protein network of native N. clavipes flagelliform silk fibers.

Wind induces variations in spider web geometry and sticky spiral droplet volume

Trap building by animals is rare because it comes at substantial costs. Using materials with properties that vary across environments maintains trap functionality. The sticky spiral silks of spider orb webs are used to catch flying prey. Web geometry, accompanied by compensatory changes in silk properties, may change across environments to sustain web functionality. We exposed the spider Cyclosa mulmeinensis to wind to test if wind-induced changes in web geometry are accompanied by changes in aggregate silk droplet morphology, axial thread width or spiral stickiness. We compared: (i) web catching area, (ii) length of total silks, (iii) mesh height, (iv) number of radii, (v) aggregate droplet morphology and (vi) spiral thread stickiness, between webs made by spiders exposed to wind with those not exposed to wind. We interpreted co-variation in droplet morphology or spiral stickiness with web capture area, mesh height or spiral length as the silk properties functionally compensating for changes in web geometry to reduce wind drag. Wind-exposed C. mulmeinensis built webs with smaller capture areas, shorter capture spiral lengths, and more widely spaced capture spirals, resulting in the expenditure of less silk. Individuals that were exposed to wind also deposited larger droplets of sticky silk but the stickiness of the spiral threads remained unchanged. The larger droplets may be a product of greater investment in water, or low molecular weight compounds facilitating atmospheric water uptake. Either way droplet dehydration in wind is likely to be minimized.

Humidity affects the extensibility of an orb-weaving spider's viscous thread droplets

The prey-capture threads found in most spider orb webs rely on viscous droplets for their stickiness. Each droplet is formed of a central mass of viscoelastic glycoprotein glue surrounded by an aqueous covering, both of which incorporate hydrophilic components. We found that the extensibility of droplets on Larinioides cornutus threads increased as humidity increased. However, the deflection of the droplets' supporting axial lines did not change, indicating that atmospheric water uptake increases glycoprotein plasticity, but not glycoprotein adhesion. The extensibility of droplets, along with that of the thread's supporting axial fibers, is responsible for summing the adhesion of multiple thread droplets. Therefore, daily changes in humidity have the potential to significantly alter the performance of viscous threads and orb webs.

Spider silk: understanding the structure-function relationship of a natural fiber

Spider silk is of great interest because of its extraordinary physical properties, such as strength and toughness. Here we discuss how these physical properties relate to the way in which spiders have utilized this material in prey capture, forcing its evolution to a high-performance fiber. Female spiders can produce up to seven different types of silk, and all these have different physical properties, which relate to their various functions. The variation in properties are due to underlying differences in the proteins making up these silks. As our understanding of spider silk has increased in the recent years, it has been possible to produce recombinant versions of the respective proteins. Recombinant proteins open up the potential to produce synthetic silk fibers with properties similar to those of the natural spider silk threads.

Solid-state NMR comparison of various spiders' dragline silk fiber

Major ampullate (dragline) spider silk is a coveted biopolymer due to its combination of strength and extensibility. The dragline silk of different spiders have distinct mechanical properties that can be qualitatively correlated to the protein sequence. This study uses amino acid analysis and carbon-13 solid-state NMR to compare the molecular composition, structure, and dynamics of major ampullate dragline silk of four orb-web spider species ( Nephila clavipes , Araneus gemmoides , Argiope aurantia , and Argiope argentata ) and one cobweb species ( Latrodectus hesperus ). The mobility of the protein backbone and amino acid side chains in water exposed silk fibers is shown to correlate to the proline content. This implies that regions of major ampullate spidroin 2 protein, which is the only dragline silk protein with any significant proline content, become significantly hydrated in dragline spider silk.

Influence of moisture on the mechanical behavior of a natural composite

The effects of moisture on the mechanical properties of the spicules of the sponge Euplectella aspergillum have been investigated. Determinations were made with the aid of a dynamic mechanical analyzer in both the static and dynamic modes, as well as imaging of the failed surfaces with scanning electron microscopy. For comparison purposes, melt-grown glass fibers of similar diameters were also studied in both distilled water and seawater. That exposure reduced both the stiffness and strength of the spicules. In addition, the energy required to achieve complete failure decreased in moist environments. The data for the wet spicules in both aqueous media showed decreasing values of energy dissipated until catastrophic failure compared to dry samples. The strength of wet glass decreased when compared with the dry condition, and the elastic modulus was also reduced. The most marked influence of moisture was seen in the damping effects in moist spicule samples that were nearly an order of magnitude larger than the damping of dry spicules. This effect was attributed mainly to plasticization of the thin organic layers.

Spider silk: thousands of nano-filaments and dollops of sticky glue

Some spiders use glues while others deploy strands of fine filaments for fixing flies. Recent work has provided new insights into the mechanical properties of these nano-scale ropes.

Spider silk as archetypal protein elastomer

We present an overview of the physical properties of spider silks, and introduce a model designed to study the energy absorbed by the material as it stretches before breaking. Of particular interest are the inter- and intramolecular hydrogen bonds as well as the role of water in modifying the material properties of silk. A solid understanding of this interaction is of paramount importance for any deeper insights into the mechanical properties of any biomaterial. Here we note that the typical biological material has evolved to function in the fully hydrated elastomeric state. We conclude that silk after its transformation from the hydrated feedstock to the dehydrated fibre state can in fact be analysed in great detail and interpreted as representative of a wide range of elastomeric proteins covering, inter alia, bone, keratins, elastin and collagen.

β‐Silks: Enhancing and Controlling Aggregation

It appears that fiber-forming proteins are not an exclusive group but that, with appropriate conditions, many proteins can potentially aggregate and form fibrils; though only certain proteins, for example, amyloids and silks, do so under normal physiological conditions. Even so, this suggests a ubiquitous aggregation mechanism in which the protein environment is at least as important as the sequence. An ideal model system in which forced and natural aggregation has been observed is silk. Silks have evolved specifically to readily form insoluble ordered structures with a wide range of structural functionality. The animal, be it silkworm or spider, will produce, store, and transport high molecular weight proteins in a complex environment to eventually allow formation of silk fibers with a variety of mechanical properties. Here we review fiber formation and its prerequisites, and discuss the mechanism by which the animal facilitates and modulates silk assembly to achieve controlled protein aggregation.

Hierarchical chain model of spider capture silk elasticity

Spider capture silk is a biomaterial with both high strength and high elasticity, but the structural design principle underlying these remarkable properties is still unknown. It was revealed recently by atomic force microscopy that an exponential force-extension relationship holds both for capture silk mesostructures and for intact capture silk fibers [N. Becker et al., Nat. Mater. 2, 278 (2003)]]. In this Letter a simple hierarchical chain model was proposed to understand and reproduce this striking observation. In the hierarchical chain model, a polymer is composed of many structural motifs which organize into structural modules and supramodules in a hierarchical manner. Each module in this hierarchy has its own characteristic force. The repetitive patterns in the amino-acid sequence of the major flagelliform protein of spider capture silk is in support of this model.

Molecular nanosprings in spider capture-silk threads

Spider capture silk is a natural material that outperforms almost any synthetic material in its combination of strength and elasticity. The structure of this remarkable material is still largely unknown, because spider-silk proteins have not been crystallized. Capture silk is the sticky spiral in the webs of orb-weaving spiders. Here we are investigating specifically the capture spiral threads from Araneus, an ecribellate orb-weaving spider. The major protein of these threads is flagelliform protein, a variety of silk fibroin. We present models for molecular and supramolecular structures of flagelliform protein, derived from amino acid sequences, force spectroscopy (molecular pulling) and stretching of bulk capture web. Pulling on molecules in capture-silk fibres from Araneus has revealed rupture peaks due to sacrificial bonds, characteristic of other self-healing biomaterials. The overall force changes are exponential for both capture-silk molecules and intact strands of capture silk.

Spider flagelliform silk: lessons in protein design, gene structure, and molecular evolution

Spiders spin multiple types of silks that are renowned for their superb mechanical properties. Flagelliform silk, used in the capture spiral of an orb-web, is one of the few silks characterized by both cDNA and genomic DNA data. This fibroin is composed of repeating ensembles of three types of amino acid sequence motifs. The predominant subrepeat, GPGGX, likely forms a beta-turn, and tandem arrays of these turns are thought to create beta-spirals. These spring-like helices may be critical for the exceptional ability of capture silk to stretch and recoil. Each ensemble of motifs was found to correspond to a different exon within the flagelliform gene. The pattern of sequence similarity among exons indicates intragenic concerted evolution. Surprisingly, the introns between the iterated exons are also homogenized with each other. This unusual molecular architecture in the flagelliform silk gene has implications for the evolution and maintenance of spider silk proteins.

Microbial production of spider silk proteins

The remarkable properties of spider dragline silk and related protein polymers will find many applications if the materials can be produced economically. We have demonstrated the production of high molecular weight spider dragline silk analog proteins encoded by synthetic genes in several microbial systems, including Escherichia coli and Pichia pastoris. In E. coli, proteins of up to 1000 amino acids in length could be produced efficiently, but the yield and homogeneity of higher molecular weight silk proteins were found to be limited by truncated synthesis, probably as a result of ribosome termination errors. No such phenomenon was observed in the yeast P. pastoris, where higher molecular weight silk proteins could be produced without heterogeneity due to truncated synthesis. Spider dragline silk analog proteins could be secreted by P. pastoris when fused to both the signal sequence and N-terminal pro-sequence of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae alpha-mating factor gene.

Strength and structure of spiders' silks

Spider silks are composite materials with often complex microstructures. They are spun from liquid crystalline dope using a complicated spinning mechanism which gives the animal considerable control. The material properties of finished silk are modified by the effects of water and other solvents, and spiders make use of this to produce fibres with specific qualities. The surprising sophistication of spider silks and spinning technologies makes it imperative for us to understand both material and manufacturing in nature before embarking on the commercialization of biotechnologically modified silk dope.

Evidence from flagelliform silk cDNA for the structural basis of elasticity and modular nature of spider silks

Orb-web weaving spiders rely on their aerial nets to entrap flying prey. A key mechanical feature of orb-web design is the high elasticity of the capture spiral. We report the cloning of substantial cDNA for flagelliform gland silk protein, which forms the core fiber of the catching spiral. Like all silks, the flagelliform protein is composed largely of iterated sequences. The dominant repeat of this protein is Gly-Pro-Gly-Gly-X, which can appear up to 63 times in tandem arrays. This motif likely forms Pro2-Gly3 type II beta-turns and the resulting series of concatenated beta-turns are thought to form a beta-spiral. We propose that this spring-like helix is the basis for the elasticity of silk. The variable fifth position of the motif (X) is occupied by a small subset of residues (Ala, Ser, Tyr, Val). Moreover, these X amino acids occur in specific patterns throughout the repeats. This ordered variation strongly suggests that with hydration, the beta-spirals form hydrogen-bonded networks that increase the elasticity of flagelliform silk. The self-assembly of flagelliform protein monomers into silk fibers may be promoted by beta-spiral/beta-spiral interactions. Additionally, the other two motifs in the flagelliform protein, Gly-Gly-X and a spacer that disrupts the glycine-rich regions, may contribute to the alignment of monomers into fibers. The flagelliform protein cDNA was compared to the other members of the spider silk gene family. We show that all spider silk proteins can be characterized as sets of shared structural modules. The occurrence of these modules among the proteins is inconsistent with the phylogenetic relationships inferred from the C-terminal regions. This observation, along with the high level of variation among individual flagelliform protein repeats, but striking lack of such variation in the other silk proteins, suggests that unusual homogenization processes are involved in silk protein evolution.