UC Riverside biologist receives prestigious MacArthur ...(a result they are being considered in im...)

Highlights of research by the Hayashi group at UCR:

• Hayashis lab has shown that spider silks are created not just by the spinning process, but also by ancient protein structures handed down genetically over millions of years of evolutionary history.
• Her research group uncovered the molecular structure of the gene for the protein that female spiders use to make their silken egg cases a discovery that will help biotechnologists develop applications for spider silk and shed light on spider evolution.
• In seeking the genetic origins of spider orb-web silks, Hayashis research group discovered evidence indicating that wagon-wheel shaped nets are extremely old, so old that dinosaurs may have seen them.
• Her lab identified the genes, and determined the DNA sequences, for two key proteins in the dragline silk of the black widow spider an advance that may lead to a variety of new materials for industrial, medical and military uses.

Its a wonderful surprise to win this fellowship not only for me but also for my collaborators and students, Hayashi said. We feel fortunate to receive this honor and I am extremely grateful that the work done in my lab has been recognized in this way."

Hayashi received her bachelors and doctoral degrees in biology from Yale University. She was a U.S. Presidential Scholar, National Merit Scholar, and recipient of both a Graduate Fellowship and Dissertation Improvement Grant from the National Science Foundation. She joined the faculty at UCR in spring 2001. Since then, she has been the principal investigator on multiple grants from the National Science Foundation and the Army Research Office.

Hayashis many influences include
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