Sericulture: Raw Silk

2. Pin the earthworm to the tray using one pin on either end of the worm.

In part 2 of the experiment we are inducing RNAi through the process of feeding. To do so, a black pen is used to label the bottom of an OP50 seeded plate with the date and “wild type”. Another OP50 seeded plate is labeled with the date and “dpy-13”. A black pen is then used to label the bottom of the plate seeded with dpy-13 RNAi feeding strain with the date and “wild type”. Five L4-stage worms from the plate of wild type worms are then picked and moved to the OP50 seeded plate labeled “wild type”. Any eggs or young larvae that may have been accidentally transferred are to be picked off of the plate and then flamed in a Bunsen burner. The same method is used to move five L4 wild type worms to the plate seeded with the dpy-13 RNAi feeding strain, and once again to move five L4 dpy-13 worms to the OP50 seeded plate labeled “dpy-13”. These plates are then incubated upside down at 20˚C.

When the infective larvae on the pasture are eaten by the sheep they develop in the 4th stage larvae and become adults. This stage is called the host stage as they need to live inside a host (the sheep) or the worms will die. They live inside the sheep’s abomasum during which they lay eggs and will spend the rest of their lives and the whole cycle repeats itself

As caterpillars, Ailanthus Webworm Moths eat a variation of plants and shrubs. The moth are named after the Ailanthus tree because that is where the larvae make its web. The caterpillar are fond of eating the leaves of the trees. Ailanthus Webworm Moths are included in the Bagworm moth family because as caterpillars, they spin a cocoon and carry it around with them. As it is being dragged along, it collects leaves, sticks, and other foliage. Once the caterpillar is ready to change, it will attach the cocoon to a brach and crawl

The Chinese did not only trade silk, they also traded tea, salt, sugar, porcelain, and even some spices. The Silk Road traveled over 4000 miles and even Marco Polo traveled the Silk Road, Marco Polo was an Italian merchant traveler. It was also thought that even the bubonic plague was spread along the Silk Road to Europe. When traveling the Silk Road, there were many routes, the longer ones were more safe while the shorter ones were very dangerous. So in order to stay safe merchants traveled along the long path. silk was produced very early, as early as 3500 B.C. and this silk was considered a luxury. In short, those are the fun facts of the Silk

1992; Floater 1996a). Second through to eighth instar emerge from the egg mass between December and May; ascending the host plant in a single-file procession to feed (Floater 1996a). First instar larvae have been observed to remain within the egg mass not feeding (Floater 1996a; Floater & Zalucki 1999). Final instars leave the host plant during May in larval processions before splitting into subgroups and then later individuals to pupate (Floater 1996a). Individual larvae form an underground cocoon of silk, soil and setae where they will diapause over winter; pupation and emergence does not take place until September or October (Van Schagen et al. 1992; Floater 1996a).

Mealworms are attracted to moist and dark places, like household food items. Food items like oatmeal and grains are where they can be found. When the mealworms do not live in civilization, they like to eat fungus, seeds, and plants. They also can live their whole lives without any water, they mainly get their water

Tapeworms are rare in the United States nowadays. Since they are passed on by undercooked beef, pork, and fish, there are protocols to be followed so people can be assured their food is safe. Most cases of tapeworms stem from people who have left the country. These parasite’s anatomy is very useful for their environment. The skin will absorb food rather than ingesting it, and the body is perfect for latching onto the intestine walls. The head is slightly knob-like and is rimmed with tiny hooks. Most species need a mate to reproduce, but in some species of tapeworms, internal fertilization is possible. After storing the eggs, the outer layer of the body will shed, allowing the eggs to leave the host or hatch and return to the intestine. Tapeworms will live in the

The second thing we’ll be talking about is Technology/Innovations. I got my information from both these sites Some things that came from the silk road were gunpowder, compass, printing, glassware, crossbow, and some knowledge about silkworm breeding and silk spinning. Some more items they made that were cool were snow-white

4. The worms start off as babies in the bloodstream of an animal where they are sucked out by mosquitoes. The mosquitoes will bite a new victim and put the worm in the the animal where it will go to a lymph gland and start to spread disease and irritate the host. The adults stay for around 5 years if not treated. The adults will reproduce and the babies will go to the blood where the process will restart.

Scientists found a problem when it came to mass producing spider silk, spiders are extremely territorial and tend to kill any other spider that invades said territory. This had been tested by scientists with the Golden Globe Weaver spiders and led to most of the spider farm being wiped out due to their cannibalism. So instead scientists looked to finding out if a different organism could produce the spider silk, like goats. First, the experts had to identify the gene that spiders had that produced the kind of silk they were looking for. Eventually they found that there were six variations that spiders produce. The one that the scientists decided on is called dragline silk, it makes up the framework of a spider’s web. They then experimented

The primary form of reproduction for all Echinodermata is sexual reproduction. Sexual reproduction is achieved by the fertilization of a female egg by male spermatozoa. The interesting thing is, echinoderm male and females expel their eggs and spermatozoa into water, a process known as spawning, rather than the human and animal form of sexual reproduction. Once an egg is fertilized by a sperm and an embryo develops, the echinoderm could take several different paths on its way to develop into its juvenile state. Eggs that are small and lack yolk will go through a stage in which it spends time as free-swimming larvae that becomes part of the plankton. These echinoderms will begin their life actively feeding on small organisms until they reach their juvenile stage and begin living on the seafloor. This track of development is known as indirect development. Embryos that develop from large eggs may develop into a larval, which is planktonic, but it would live off of its own yolk rather than feeding off of small organisms before the juvenile stage. This is known ad direct development of echinoderms.

The web-spinning insects of the embioptera order are ones that live in common homes with each other. These common homes are extremely intricate. Embiopterans produce silk with the basitarsomeres (web-spinning apparatuses) of their forelegs. It plays a crucial role in the lives of these insects. It provides protection and shelter (Büsse… 1). Silk is the ultimate biological material because it has a wide variety of uses and isn’t hard to make.

The Clione limacina’s larvae are only about 0.15 millimeters long, and they only grow to about 4 centimeters long (Hopcroft). Sea Angels are protandrous hermaphrodites, which means that they start off as a male and then later on become females (Hopcroft). Clione limacina reproduces by fusing a female gamete from one limacina with a male gamete from another limacina, or cross-fertilization (Hopcroft). The Sea Angel will lie between 30 and 40 eggs in elongated and jelly-like strips that are about 1 to 1.2 millimeters long (Hopcroft). When the larvae of the Clione limacina hatch they have a thimble shaped, curtain-like membrane made out of cilia surrounding their mouth (Hopcroft). As the Sea Angel grows into an adult the thimble like shell falls off

The first stage in the life cycle is the egg stage. The larva stays in the egg stage for about3 to 4 weeks. They are laid by the female under milkweed leaves. It’s rare to find more than one on a single leaf. The eggs are oval-shaped, off white or yellow and marked with a series of lines and ridges. The hard-outer shell or chorion, protects the developing larvae.