Berlin 2018 – wissenschaftliches Programm

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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik

BP 9: Postersession I

BP 9.17: Poster

Montag, 12. März 2018, 17:30–19:30, Poster A

Investigation of sea cucumber proteoglycans by atomic force microscopy — •Niklas Biere¹, Pierre Piel¹, Volker Walhorn¹, Xavier Fernàndez-Busquets², Paulo A. S. Mourão³, Eduardo Vilanova³, and Dario Anselmetti¹ — ¹Experimental Biophysics & Applied Nanosciences, University of Bielefeld, Germany — ²Nanoscience and Nanotechnology Institute (IN2UB), University of Barcelona, Spain — ³Hospital Universitário Clementino Fraga Filho and Instituto de Bioquímica Médica, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Sea cucumbers belong to the echinoderm family and are a widely spread marine life form in the world’s oceans, yet not all aspects of their biology are well researched. As such, they possess remarkable properties, like the catch connective tissue, whose mechanical stiffness can be adapted without the use of muscles. In this work, we investigate the proteoglycan molecules from the sea cucumber species Isostichopus badionotus which make up part of its body wall. These proteoglycans, which exhibit antimalarial and anticoagulant properties, are studied in detail with atomic force microscopy to gain insights in the structure and chemical morphology of their polysaccharide components, namely fucosylated chondroitin sulfates and sulfated fucans. We will discuss their role in maintaining the adaptive elasticity of the tissue and show that this ability is related to the concentration of Ca²⁺ ions, which subsequently influences the tissue’s capability to store water.