Strong and Tough Silk for Resilient Attachment Discs: The Mechanical Properties of Piriform Silk in the Spider Cupiennius salei (Keyserling, 1877)
Spiders are able to produce different types of silk with different mechanical and biological properties. Piriform silk is produced to secure spiders and their webs to surfaces by using a nano-fibril network embedded in a cement-like matrix. Despite their fundamental role, the mechanical properties a...
| Main Authors: | , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Frontiers Media S.A.
2020-06-01
|
| Series: | Frontiers in Materials |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fmats.2020.00138/full |
| _version_ | 1819011174350454784 |
|---|---|
| author | Gabriele Greco Jonas O. Wolff Nicola M. Pugno Nicola M. Pugno |
| author_facet | Gabriele Greco Jonas O. Wolff Nicola M. Pugno Nicola M. Pugno |
| author_sort | Gabriele Greco |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Spiders are able to produce different types of silk with different mechanical and biological properties. Piriform silk is produced to secure spiders and their webs to surfaces by using a nano-fibril network embedded in a cement-like matrix. Despite their fundamental role, the mechanical properties and function of these anchorages are still poorly understood due to the practical difficulties in nano-fibril sample preparation, the complexity of the system, and the high variation of attachment disc structures. Here we estimated the mechanical properties of this nano-fibril silk and those of the whole silk membrane in the large wandering spider Cupiennius salei through a combination of nanoindentation and nanotensile techniques and with the support of a simple analytical model. The results highlight the mechanical properties of the piriform silk, facilitating the modeling of silk composite mechanics. This could inspire the design of more efficient bio-inspired adhesives and fabrics. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-21T01:23:58Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-53c5673d34eb4638b3541b4dc7554b20 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2296-8016 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-21T01:23:58Z |
| publishDate | 2020-06-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Materials |
| spelling | doaj.art-53c5673d34eb4638b3541b4dc7554b202022-12-21T19:20:33ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Materials2296-80162020-06-01710.3389/fmats.2020.00138530789Strong and Tough Silk for Resilient Attachment Discs: The Mechanical Properties of Piriform Silk in the Spider Cupiennius salei (Keyserling, 1877)Gabriele Greco0Jonas O. Wolff1Nicola M. Pugno2Nicola M. Pugno3Laboratory of Bio-Inspired, Bionic, Nano, Meta, Materials & Mechanics, Department of Civil, Environmental and Mechanical Engineering, University of Trento, Trento, ItalyDepartment of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW, AustraliaLaboratory of Bio-Inspired, Bionic, Nano, Meta, Materials & Mechanics, Department of Civil, Environmental and Mechanical Engineering, University of Trento, Trento, ItalyQueen Mary University of London, London, United KingdomSpiders are able to produce different types of silk with different mechanical and biological properties. Piriform silk is produced to secure spiders and their webs to surfaces by using a nano-fibril network embedded in a cement-like matrix. Despite their fundamental role, the mechanical properties and function of these anchorages are still poorly understood due to the practical difficulties in nano-fibril sample preparation, the complexity of the system, and the high variation of attachment disc structures. Here we estimated the mechanical properties of this nano-fibril silk and those of the whole silk membrane in the large wandering spider Cupiennius salei through a combination of nanoindentation and nanotensile techniques and with the support of a simple analytical model. The results highlight the mechanical properties of the piriform silk, facilitating the modeling of silk composite mechanics. This could inspire the design of more efficient bio-inspired adhesives and fabrics.https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fmats.2020.00138/fullspider silkpiriform silkattachment discmechanical propertiesnanoindentation |
| spellingShingle | Gabriele Greco Jonas O. Wolff Nicola M. Pugno Nicola M. Pugno Strong and Tough Silk for Resilient Attachment Discs: The Mechanical Properties of Piriform Silk in the Spider Cupiennius salei (Keyserling, 1877) Frontiers in Materials spider silk piriform silk attachment disc mechanical properties nanoindentation |
| title | Strong and Tough Silk for Resilient Attachment Discs: The Mechanical Properties of Piriform Silk in the Spider Cupiennius salei (Keyserling, 1877) |
| title_full | Strong and Tough Silk for Resilient Attachment Discs: The Mechanical Properties of Piriform Silk in the Spider Cupiennius salei (Keyserling, 1877) |
| title_fullStr | Strong and Tough Silk for Resilient Attachment Discs: The Mechanical Properties of Piriform Silk in the Spider Cupiennius salei (Keyserling, 1877) |
| title_full_unstemmed | Strong and Tough Silk for Resilient Attachment Discs: The Mechanical Properties of Piriform Silk in the Spider Cupiennius salei (Keyserling, 1877) |
| title_short | Strong and Tough Silk for Resilient Attachment Discs: The Mechanical Properties of Piriform Silk in the Spider Cupiennius salei (Keyserling, 1877) |
| title_sort | strong and tough silk for resilient attachment discs the mechanical properties of piriform silk in the spider cupiennius salei keyserling 1877 |
| topic | spider silk piriform silk attachment disc mechanical properties nanoindentation |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fmats.2020.00138/full |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT gabrielegreco strongandtoughsilkforresilientattachmentdiscsthemechanicalpropertiesofpiriformsilkinthespidercupienniussaleikeyserling1877 AT jonasowolff strongandtoughsilkforresilientattachmentdiscsthemechanicalpropertiesofpiriformsilkinthespidercupienniussaleikeyserling1877 AT nicolampugno strongandtoughsilkforresilientattachmentdiscsthemechanicalpropertiesofpiriformsilkinthespidercupienniussaleikeyserling1877 AT nicolampugno strongandtoughsilkforresilientattachmentdiscsthemechanicalpropertiesofpiriformsilkinthespidercupienniussaleikeyserling1877 |