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Impact of Hierarchical Architecture of Cryptotermes brevis Wing on the Modulation of Bacterial Adhesion

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Abstract

The wing architecture is an inspiration to fabricate novel materials with exquisite properties. The current study characterizes the structure and biological function of a termite’s wing. The topography of the surface of the wing was studied by electron microscopy, and surface profilometer. The physicochemical property of the surface was analyzed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction spectroscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry analysis of the epicuticle content. Water Contact Angle measurement confirmed the hydrophobicity of the wing surface. When microorganisms come in contact with the surface of the wing, they adhere to the wing surface due to cell surface properties of their own and the surface chemistry of the wing. The current study reported the adhesion behavior of two bacterial species. The bactericidal activity of the wing was confirmed by counting the bacterial cell viability and examination under a confocal laser scanning microscope. Adhesion of bacteria was observed under the electron microscope. Bacterial oxidative stress, the topography of the wing, and the surface chemistry of the wing are the crucial factors that induce bactericidal activity. The nanostructure along with the chemical composition of the wing can be mimicked for the fabrication of novel material with antibacterial properties.

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Acknowledgements

SKP and SM are thankful to MHRD for fellowship assistance. NN is thankful to the Department of science and technology, DST-Inspire, India for financial assistance, and JB is thankful to DBT, India for fellowship assistance. The authors would like to express sincere gratitude to Dr. Elena P. Ivanova for providing valuable suggestions regarding the surface property of the wing to improve the quality of work. We are also grateful to the central instrument facility of NIT, Rourkela, Odisha, India for providing the instruments. Our lab is also supported by the Department of Biotechnology, Government of India, Grant No. BT/PR21857/NNT/28/1238/2017, Science and engineering research board (SERB) EMR/2017/003054, Odisha DBT (Department of biotechnology) 3325/ST(BIO)-02/2017. Anonymous reviewers are thankfully acknowledged for their valuable comments on the manuscript.

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  1. Neural Developmental Biology Laboratory, Department of Life Science, National Institute of Technology, 769008, Rourkela, Sundergarh, Odisha, India

    Sanjeev Kumar Paikra, Sumit Mukherjee, Nibedita Nayak, Janmejaya Bag & Monalisa Mishra

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  1. Sanjeev Kumar Paikra
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  2. Sumit Mukherjee
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Correspondence to Monalisa Mishra.

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Paikra, S.K., Mukherjee, S., Nayak, N. et al. Impact of Hierarchical Architecture of Cryptotermes brevis Wing on the Modulation of Bacterial Adhesion. J Bionic Eng 19, 516–529 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42235-021-00148-y

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