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Q&A ViewAttendees 4

Systematics, Evolution, and Biodiversity

10-Minute Paper

SysEB: Genomics

The assembly of the repetitive H-fibroin gene, the primary protein component of caddisfly silk

Sunday, October 31, 2021
9:48 AM – 10:00 AM MT
Location: Colorado Convention Center, Meeting Room 505-507
In-Person

Caddisflies (Insecta: Trichoptera) are nature’s freshwater architects. They assemble both portable and fixed composite structures that provide camouflage, protection, and aid in respiration. These structures are held together with specialized silk that acts as an underwater adhesive. While many genes have been identified as necessary in silk production, the primary protein component is encoded by the blocky repetitive heavy fibroin gene. Because of the density of repetitive DNA within conserved termini, the complete sequence has historically been challenging to assemble using either high-fidelity short-read or noisy long-read technology. Here we assemble the complete and phased h-fibroin gene across multiple caddisflies and discuss implications for the evolution of this remarkable bioadhesive.