Extensible byssus of Pinctada fucata: Ca(2+)-stabilized nanocavities and a thrombospondin-1 protein.

ABSTRACT: The extensible byssus is produced by the foot of bivalve animals, including the pearl oyster Pinctada fucata, and enables them to attach to hard underwater surfaces. However, the mechanism of their extensibility is not well understood. To understand this mechanism, we analyzed the ultrastructure, composition and mechanical properties of the P. fucata byssus using electron microscopy, elemental analysis, proteomics and mechanical testing. In contrast to the microstructures of Mytilus sp. byssus, the P. fucata byssus has an exterior cuticle without granules and an inner core with nanocavities. The removal of Ca(2+) by ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) treatment expands the nanocavities and reduces the extensibility of the byssus, which is accompanied by a decrease in the β-sheet conform

SUBMITTER: Liu C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4597212 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature