Caddisfly larvae produce silk containing heavy and light fibroins, similar to the silk of Lepidoptera, for the construction of underwater structures. We analyzed the silk of Limnephilus lunatus belonging to the case-forming suborder Integripalpia. We analyzed the transcriptome, mapped the transcripts to a reference genome and identified over 80 proteins using proteomic methods, and checked the specificity of their expression. For comparison, we also analyzed the transcriptome and silk proteome of Limnephilus flavicornis. Our results show that fibroins and adhesives are produced together in the middle and posterior parts of the silk glands, while the anterior part produces enzymes and an unknown protein AT24. The number of silk proteins of L. lunatus far exceeds that of the web-spinning Plectrocnemia conspersa, a previously described species from the suborder Annulipalpia. Our results support the idea of increasing the structural complexity of silk in rigid case builders compared to trap web builders.

• Klíčová slova
• Limnephilus flavicornis, Plectrocnemia conspersa, Fibroin, Gene duplication, Hydrophobicity, Sericin,
• MeSH
• fibroiny genetika   metabolismus   chemie   MeSH
• hedvábí * metabolismus   chemie   MeSH
• hmyz metabolismus   genetika   MeSH
• hmyzí proteiny genetika   metabolismus   MeSH
• proteom MeSH
• proteomika metody   MeSH
• stanovení celkové genové exprese MeSH
• transkriptom MeSH
• zvířata MeSH
• Check Tag
• zvířata MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH

Similar to Lepidoptera, the larvae of Trichoptera are also capable of producing silk. Plectrocnemia conspersa, a predatory species belonging to the suborder Annulipalpia, builds massive silken retreats with preycapturing nets. In this study, we describe the silk glands of P. conspersa and use the multi-omics methods to obtain a complete picture of the fiber composition. A combination of silk gland-specific transcriptome and proteomic analyses of the spun-out fibers yielded 27 significant candidates whose full-length sequences and gene structures were retrieved from the publicly available genome database. About one-third of the candidates were completely novel proteins for which there are no described homologs, including a group of five pseudofibroins, proteins with a composition similar to fibroin heavy chain. The rest were homologs of lepidopteran silk proteins, although some had a larger number of paralogs. On the other hand, P. conspersa fibers lacked some proteins that are regular components in moth silk. In summary, the multi-omics approach provides an opportunity to compare the overall composition of silk with other insect species. A sufficient number of such studies will make it possible to distinguish between the basic components of all silks and the proteins that represent the adaptation of the fibers for specific purposes or environments.

• Klíčová slova
• Trichoptera, adhesion, biomaterials, caddisfly, fibers, fibroin, mucin, zonadhesin,
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH