Proteomic Evidence for Components of Spider Silk Synthesis from Black Widow Silk Glands and Fibers.

ABSTRACT: Spider silk research has largely focused on spidroins, proteins that are the primary components of spider silk fibers. Although a number of spidroins have been characterized, other types of proteins associated with silk synthesis are virtually unknown. Previous analyses of tissue-specific RNA-seq libraries identified 647 predicted genes that were differentially expressed in silk glands of the Western black widow, Latrodectus hesperus. Only ∼5% of these silk-gland specific transcripts (SSTs) encode spidroins; although the remaining predicted genes presumably encode other proteins associated with silk production, this is mostly unverified. Here, we used proteomic analysis of multiple silk glands and dragline silk fiber to investigate the translation of the differentially expressed genes. We

SUBMITTER: Chaw RC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5075943 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature