Coiling and maturation of a high-performance fibre in hagfish slime gland thread cells.
The defensive slime of hagfishes contains thousands of intermediate filament protein threads that are manufactured within specialized gland thread cells. The material properties of these threads rival those of spider dragline silks, which makes them an ideal model for biomimetic efforts to produce sustainable protein materials, yet how the thread is produced and organized within the cell is not well understood. Here we show how changes in nuclear morphology, size and position can explain the three-dimensional pattern of thread coiling in gland thread cells, and how the ultrastructure of the thread changes as very young thread cells develop into large cells with fully mature coiled threads. Our model provides an explanation for the complex process of thread assembly and organization that has fascinated and perplexed biologists for over a century, and provides valuable insights for the quest to manufacture high-performance biomimetic protein materials.
Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, NIG-2W1, Canada.
Timothy
T
Winegard
Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, NIG-2W1, Canada.
Julia
J
Herr
1] Laboratory of Neuro Imaging (LONI), Institute for Neuroimaging and Informatics (INI), Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California (USC), Los Angeles, California 90095, USA [2] Department of Neurology, Laboratory of Neuro Imaging, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California 90095, USA.
Carlos
C
Mena
1] Laboratory of Neuro Imaging (LONI), Institute for Neuroimaging and Informatics (INI), Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California (USC), Los Angeles, California 90095, USA [2] Department of Neurology, Laboratory of Neuro Imaging, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California 90095, USA.
Betty
B
Lee
1] Laboratory of Neuro Imaging (LONI), Institute for Neuroimaging and Informatics (INI), Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California (USC), Los Angeles, California 90095, USA [2] Department of Neurology, Laboratory of Neuro Imaging, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California 90095, USA [3] University of Michigan, UMSN 4311, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-5482, USA.
Ivo
I
Dinov
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California 90095-1606, USA.
Deborah
D
Bird
Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, NIG-2W1, Canada.
Mark
M
Bernards
1] Laboratory of Neuro Imaging (LONI), Institute for Neuroimaging and Informatics (INI), Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California (USC), Los Angeles, California 90095, USA [2] Department of Neurology, Laboratory of Neuro Imaging, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California 90095, USA.
Sam
S
Hobel
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California 90095-1606, USA.
Blaire
B
Van Valkenburgh
1] Laboratory of Neuro Imaging (LONI), Institute for Neuroimaging and Informatics (INI), Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California (USC), Los Angeles, California 90095, USA [2] Department of Neurology, Laboratory of Neuro Imaging, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California 90095, USA.
Arthur
A
Toga
Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, NIG-2W1, Canada.
Douglas
D
Fudge
D000825:Animal Structures / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure; D000818:Animals; D029941:Fish Proteins / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D006196:Hagfishes / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D007381:Intermediate Filament Proteins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure
D029941:Fish Proteins; D007381:Intermediate Filament Proteins