Relating spidroin motif prevalence and periodicity to the mechanical properties of major ampullate spider silks

This study serves as a primer for investigating the molecular properties of spidroins that underlie species-specificα* values. Initial findings are that while overall motif composition was similar between species, certain motifs and higher level periodicities of glycine-rich region lengths showed variation, notably greater distances between poly-A motifs inA. aurantia sequences. In addition to increased period lengths,A. aurantia spidroins tended to have an increased prevalence of charged and hydrophobic residues. These increases may impact the number and strength of hydrogen bond networks within fibers, which have been implicated in conformational changes and formation of nanocrystals, contributing to the greater extensibility ofA. aurantia draglines compared to those ofL. hesperus.
Source: Journal of Comparative Physiology B: Biochemical, Systemic, and Environmental Physiology - Category: Physiology Source Type: research