-
September 14, 2009 - Volume 87, Number 37
- p. 28
Science & Technology Concentrates
More Science & Technology Concentrates
- Killing TB In Its Sleep
- An antiparasitic drug can kill tuberculosis bacteria, whether they’re actively replicating or not, hinting at a possible new treatment
- Spectrum Links Hydrocarbon To Space
- The first high-resolution infrared spectrum of protonated naphthalene helps clear up a tangled forest of spectral lines seen in space
- Dopamine Triggers Drug-Abuse Memories
- In a newly discovered role, neurotransmitter signaling in the brain sparks memories that reinforce the allure of addictive drugs
- Why Spider Webs Stick
- Chemists identify two adhesive proteins that give web fibers a sticky coating, increasing the yuck factor.
- Protein Boots Toxic Arsenic From Cells
- Scientists identify a transport protein that can kick arsenic compounds out of liver cells, suggesting a novel therapeutic application
- Revealing Pictures Of Molecular Orbitals
- In a new use, photoelectron spectroscopy provides distribution maps of electrons in molecular orbitals
- One-Pot Route To Brushy, Peptide-Bearing Polymers
- Synthesis yields peptidic polymers with predictable and highly uniform molecular weights
- Heavy-Water Data Aid Climate Models
- Measurements of isotopic ratios of H2O and HDO in the atmosphere provide new data that should improve climate predictions
Topics Covered
L. Church/Flickr
A golden orb weaver, Nephila clavipes, sits on its sticky web.
The next time you walk into a spider web and it clings to your face, causing you to cringe, blame it on adhesive proteins. Spider silk has received a great deal of attention as a biomaterial because of its incredible strength, but the nature of its sticky surface coating has remained a mystery. Omer Choresh, Battuya Bayarmagnai, and Randolph V. Lewis of the University of Wyoming have now discovered a pair of spider genes that code for adhesive glycoproteins, nicknaming them “silk” and “snot” because the repetitive portions of those sequences are similar to the genes responsible for silk and mucin (Biomacromolecules, DOI: 10.1021/bm900681w). The team extracted and sequenced DNA from golden orb weaver spider aggregate glands, which biologists had already suspected as the origin of the adhesive proteins. They found that the genes are located on opposite strands of the same DNA sequence, an unusual biological two-for-one deal. Choresh went to great lengths to study the proteins, Lewis says, catching spiders in barns and collecting nearly 100 webs so that his team could isolate a water-soluble glycoprotein from the surfaces. The researchers sequenced the sticky substance by mass spectrometry and showed that its fragments matched the mucinlike protein sequence.
- Chemical & Engineering News
- ISSN 0009-2347
- Copyright © 2011 American Chemical Society
Services & Tools
ACS Resources
ACS Careers
ACS is the leading employment source for recruiting scientific professionals. ACS Careers and C&EN Classifieds provide employers direct access to scientific talent both in print and online. Jobseekers | Employers
» Join ACS
Join more than 161,000 professionals in the chemical sciences world-wide, as a member of the American Chemical Society.
» Join Now!
Popular Sections
ACS, Analytical SCENE, Business, Careers, Economy, Editor, Education, Employment, Environmental SCENE, Letters, Government, Photo Galleries, Policy, Movies, Multimedia, Nanotechnology, Newscripts, Reel Science, Safety Letters, Science, Stem Cells, Stimulus Funds, Technology, Vaccines, Videos, What's That Stuff
Advertisements
