Larval and Pupal Silk Variation in the Indian Meal Moth (Plodia interpunctella): the Impact of Overcrowding and Temperature

Barve, Toshita V.; Godfrey, R. Keating; Storer, Caroline; Kawahara, Akito Y.

doi:10.18473/lepi.77i2.a5

Cited by 1 publication

(4 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…Through evaluation of temperature, resource availability, and population density, we determined rearing and production within a 24 °C incubator at 65% humidity with a resource availability of 10 (larvae/gram diet) and a population density of 0.72 (larvae/mL container volume). These conditions led to the greatest amount of silk production per life cycle without causing generational decline, which has been previously observed at temperatures >30 °C . Furthermore, we showed that the main driving force for silk production, aside from temperature, is the population density.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 80%

“…The fibroin-heavy transcript was the highest at 30 °C and could be a result of Plodia being at a higher stressed state compared to the other groups. However, this heat-stressed response over a prolonged period could have negative consequences on the fecundity of the culture. , We also observe shifts in the ratio of silk fibroin-heavy chain to silk fibroin-light chain as a function of environmental conditions. While the Bombyx heavy and light chain molar ratio has been reported as 1, this information is currently unknown for Plodia and the ratio is likely to be different due to more cysteine residues found in the Plodia heavy chain.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 70%

“…Previous research has shown that Plodia silk fibers have different diameters between wandering silk and pupal silk, leading to the conclusion that silk fiber production is a dynamic process and altered based on the insects’ application for the fiber . These are two distinct developmental time points that demand different outputs from the silk fibers, where pupal silk is needed to protect the organism for a prolonged period, during which the insect is in a vulnerable state and wandering silk is thought to be a response to environmental stress.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, while the data support the use of higher temperatures for the maximum long-term production of wandering silk fibers, there are various considerations that make this temperature choice less than ideal. Plodia has been shown to have extensive mortality rates at 34 °C . Rearing Plodia at higher temperatures over multiple generations can diminish the fitness and fecundity of the colonies and therefore diminish the production over multiple generations.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Harvesting Silk Fibers from Plodia interpunctella: Role of Environmental Rearing Conditions in Fiber Production and Properties

Shirk,

Torres Pereira Meriade Duarte,

McTyer

et al. 2024

ACS Biomater. Sci. Eng.

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Silk fibers are produced by a wide variety of insects. The silkworm Bombyx mori (Bombyx) was domesticated because the physical properties of its silk fibers were amenable to the production of fine textiles. Subsequently, engineers have regenerated silk fibroin to form biomaterials. The monocular focus on Bombyx silk has underutilized the expanse of diverse silk proteins produced by more than 100,000 other arthropods. This vast array of silk fibers could be utilized for biomedical engineering challenges if sufficient rearing and purification processes are developed. Herein, we show that the moth, Plodia interpunctella (Plodia), represents an alternative silk source that is easily reared in highly regulated culture environments allowing for greater consistency in the silk produced. We controlled the temperature, resource availability (larvae/gram diet), and population density (larvae/mL) with the goal of increasing silk fiber production and improving homogeneity in Plodia silk proteins. We determined that higher temperatures accelerated insect growth and reduced life cycle length. Furthermore, we established initial protocols for the production of Plodia silk with optimal silk production occurring at 24 °C, with a resource availability of 10 larvae/gram and a population density of 0.72 larvae/mL. Population density was shown to be the most prominent driving force of Plodia silk mat formation among the three parameters assessed. Future work will need to link gene expression, protein production and purification, and resulting mechanical properties as a function of environmental cues to further transition Plodia silk into regenerated silk fibroin biomaterials.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 80%