Mechanical property regulation of chitin fiber based structural material using cuticle proteins from beetle

2014 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 25630371
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Exploratory Research
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Biofunction/Bioprocess
• Research Institution: Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology
• Principal Investigator: ARAKAKI Atsushi 東京農工大学, 工学(系)研究科(研究院), 准教授 (10367154)
• Project Period (FY): 2013-04-01 – 2015-03-31
• Keywords: 硬組織 / タンパク質 / キチン / バイオテクノロジー

Outline of Final Research Achievements

In order to protect soft body from foreign enemies, organisms form hard tissue layered by hierarchically assembled organic components. Because of their unique mechanical properties, the structures have recently received a lot of attentions in the field of materials science. In this study, we focused to study proteins involved in sclerotization of epidermal cuticles from Trypoxylus dichotomus. By the comparative analysis of sclerosing and non-sclerosing cuticles of elytra, several novel proteins most likely to be involved in sclerosing process were identified. The principle of protein function will be used for the development of hard materials which show the properties of biological hard materials.

Free Research Field

生物工学