TY - JOUR
T1 - Phase separation and ageing of glycine-rich protein from tick adhesive
AU - Ganar, Ketan A.
AU - Nandy, Manali
AU - Turbina, Polina
AU - Chen, Chang
AU - Suylen, Dennis
AU - Nihoul, Elisa
AU - Pascoe, Emily Louise
AU - van der Beelen, Stan
AU - Plaum, Maarten
AU - van den Bos, Leendert
AU - Koenraadt, Constantianus J.M.
AU - Dijkgraaf, Ingrid
AU - Deshpande, Siddharth
PY - 2025
Y1 - 2025
N2 - Hard ticks feed on their host for multiple days. To ensure firm attachment, they secrete a protein-rich saliva that eventually forms a solid cement cone. The underlying mechanism of this liquid-to-solid transition is currently not understood. This study focuses on the phase transitions of a disordered glycine-rich protein (GRP) found in tick saliva. We show that GRP undergoes liquid–liquid phase separation via simple coacervation to form biomolecular condensates in salty environments. Cation–π and π–π interactions mediated by periodically placed arginine and aromatic amino-acid residues are the primary driving forces that promote phase separation. Interestingly, GRP condensates exhibit ageing by undergoing liquid-to-gel transition over time and exhibit adhesive properties, similar to the naturally occurring cement cone. Finally, we provide evidence for protein-rich condensates in natural tick saliva. Our findings provide a starting point to gain further insights into the bioadhesion of ticks, to develop novel tick control strategies, and towards achieving biomedical applications such as tissue sealants. (Figure presented.)
AB - Hard ticks feed on their host for multiple days. To ensure firm attachment, they secrete a protein-rich saliva that eventually forms a solid cement cone. The underlying mechanism of this liquid-to-solid transition is currently not understood. This study focuses on the phase transitions of a disordered glycine-rich protein (GRP) found in tick saliva. We show that GRP undergoes liquid–liquid phase separation via simple coacervation to form biomolecular condensates in salty environments. Cation–π and π–π interactions mediated by periodically placed arginine and aromatic amino-acid residues are the primary driving forces that promote phase separation. Interestingly, GRP condensates exhibit ageing by undergoing liquid-to-gel transition over time and exhibit adhesive properties, similar to the naturally occurring cement cone. Finally, we provide evidence for protein-rich condensates in natural tick saliva. Our findings provide a starting point to gain further insights into the bioadhesion of ticks, to develop novel tick control strategies, and towards achieving biomedical applications such as tissue sealants. (Figure presented.)
U2 - 10.1038/s41557-024-01686-8
DO - 10.1038/s41557-024-01686-8
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85210586384
SN - 1755-4330
VL - 17
SP - 186
EP - 197
JO - Nature Chemistry
JF - Nature Chemistry
IS - 2
ER -