Department of Polymer Science, Integrated Bioscience Program, The University of Akron, Akron, OH 44325-3909, USA.
Nat Commun. 2010 May 17;1:19. doi: 10.1038/ncomms1019.
Modern orb-weaving spiders have evolved well-designed adhesives to capture preys. This adhesive is laid on a pair of axial silk fibres as micron-sized glue droplets that are composed of an aqueous coat of salts surrounding nodules made of glycoproteins. In this study, we measure the adhesive forces required to separate a small microscopic probe after bringing it in contact with a single glue droplet. These forces are highly rate-dependent and are two orders of magnitude higher than the capillary forces. The glycoproteins in the glue droplets behave as a viscoelastic solid and the elasticity is critical in enhancing adhesion caused by specific adhesive ligands. These results have important implications in mimicking bioadhesives.
现代圆网蜘蛛已经进化出了设计精良的粘合剂来捕捉猎物。这种粘合剂铺在一对轴向丝纤维上，形成微米大小的胶滴，胶滴由围绕着糖蛋白结节的盐溶液水层组成。在这项研究中，我们测量了将一个微小的显微镜探针接触到单个胶滴后，将其分离所需的粘附力。这些力高度依赖于速度，比毛细作用力高两个数量级。胶滴中的糖蛋白表现为粘弹性固体，弹性在增强特定粘附配体引起的粘附方面至关重要。这些结果在模拟生物粘合剂方面具有重要意义。
