The multi-layered protective cuticle of Collembola: a chemical analysis.

ABSTRACT: Collembola, also known as springtails, are soil-dwelling arthropods that typically respire through the cuticle. To avoid suffocating in wet conditions, Collembola have evolved a complex, hierarchically nanostructured, cuticle surface that repels water with remarkable efficiency. In order to gain a more profound understanding of the cuticle characteristics, the chemical composition and architecture of the cuticle of Tetrodontophora bielanensis was studied. A stepwise removal of the different cuticle layers enabled controlled access to each layer that could be analysed separately by chemical spectrometry methods and electron microscopy. We found a cuticle composition that consisted of three characteristic layers, namely, a chitin-rich lamellar base structure overlaid by protein-rich nanostru

SUBMITTER: Nickerl J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4233743 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature