Opportunities in Spider Silk
In Spiderman movies, we all see what can be done with the spider silk but what is the reality of spider silk?
The Spider silk fiber is tougher than Kevlar, more flexible than Nylon and it’s thinner than our single hair strand! The fascinating characteristics of this supermaterial possessed a great interest in the scientist's mind for a long time. Researcher says that there are seven types of spider silk but one of those, called Dragline, has caught the eye of the scientist worldwide.
The Spider silk fiber is tougher than Kevlar, more flexible than Nylon and it’s thinner than our single hair strand! The fascinating characteristics of this supermaterial possessed a great interest in the scientist's mind for a long time. Researcher says that there are seven types of spider silk but one of those, called Dragline, has caught the eye of the scientist worldwide.
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| Spider Web |
Dragline is the silk that spiders use to make the framework of the web. The reason it’s called dragline is that whenever they walk they leave the silk behind. The silk is so strong that it can be used in making bridge cables, bulletproof vests, airplanes, etc. and for its antibacterial properties it can be used in medical purposes like artificial ligaments, surgical sutures, and hernia meshes.
Then why don’t we cultivate spider or modify other insects to produce spider silk? What’s pulling us back?
We have been using silkworm, a friendly insect, to make silk clothing for around 5,000 years. But in the case of spider, a deeply territorial insect they eat their webs when they are done, and tends to dispute by each other, which makes spider farming quite impossible.
Then comes the genetic engineering, the spider store protein called “Spindroins” in a liquid crystalline solution as dope. The dope goes through a spinning valve in its body and dries into the spinnable fiber. Mostly we use bacteria for GE but in this case, bacteria will have trouble secreting the larger spidroin proteins. In the early 2000s, a biotech company called Nexia implanted spider-silk DNA into a goat fetus. The firm extracted spider-silk proteins from the offspring’s milk but could not produce the resulting fiber. In 2017 researchers at Cambridge University made synthetic spider silk that was 98% water and 2% silica (a compound of silicon and oxygen). The resulting material imitated most of the natural material’s properties and was completely biodegradable but wasn’t that strong. So, we have to wait a little more to see the spider silk in industrial production.
Source:
1.Business Insider
2.The Economist
Then why don’t we cultivate spider or modify other insects to produce spider silk? What’s pulling us back?
We have been using silkworm, a friendly insect, to make silk clothing for around 5,000 years. But in the case of spider, a deeply territorial insect they eat their webs when they are done, and tends to dispute by each other, which makes spider farming quite impossible.
Then comes the genetic engineering, the spider store protein called “Spindroins” in a liquid crystalline solution as dope. The dope goes through a spinning valve in its body and dries into the spinnable fiber. Mostly we use bacteria for GE but in this case, bacteria will have trouble secreting the larger spidroin proteins. In the early 2000s, a biotech company called Nexia implanted spider-silk DNA into a goat fetus. The firm extracted spider-silk proteins from the offspring’s milk but could not produce the resulting fiber. In 2017 researchers at Cambridge University made synthetic spider silk that was 98% water and 2% silica (a compound of silicon and oxygen). The resulting material imitated most of the natural material’s properties and was completely biodegradable but wasn’t that strong. So, we have to wait a little more to see the spider silk in industrial production.
Source:
1.Business Insider
2.The Economist
Abdullah Al Mamun
Department of Apparel Engineering, 44th Batch
Bangladesh University Of Textiles
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