Scientists engineer bionic silkworms with spider genes. They spin fibers six times stronger than Kevlar

Scientists engineer bionic silkworms with spider genes. They spin fibers six times stronger than Kevlar

Scientists recently produced super-strong silk fibers using genetically modified silkworms that have spider DNA. With radically-higher strength and toughness, this silk may be able to provide a better-quality, more environmentally-friendly alternative to synthetic fibers like nylon.

“Silkworm silk is presently the only animal silk fiber commercialized on a large scale, with well-established rearing techniques,” said scientist Junpeng Mi, a researcher at Donghua University in China. “Consequently, employing genetically modified silkworms to produce spider silk fiber enables low-cost, large-scale commercialization”;

The fibers that silkworms build their cocoons with has been cultivated for thousands of years, but while plentiful it’s famously brittle. Spiders, meanwhile, produce enviably tough and strong silk, however, cultivating it on any sort of scale has been out of reach. The “cannibalistic nature of spiders,” note the researchers, makes it impossible to house spiders together without a fight to the death of nearly all animals.

This latest study could be the best of both worlds, and a game-changer in the quest for sustainable production of this elusive natural material. Scientists have been trying to perfect this bionic ‘recipe’ for more than a decade.

To engineer silkworm with unique spidey senses, Mi and colleagues focused on a small silk protein from Araneus ventricosus, an orb-weaving spider found in East Asia. Using CRISPR-Cas9, the MiSp protein was inserted into the silkworm’s DNA, in place of the gene that codes for the silkworm’s primary silk protein.

The scientists were able to also achieve “localization,” with the gene successfully activated in the silkworm’s DNA, without it interfering with any other aspects of the animal’s natural silk production….

The resulting fibers exceeded researchers’ expectations, combing high tensile strength (1,299 MPa) and toughness (319 MJ/m3). Not only that, the fibers were far more flexible than expected; the MiSp protein is better known for producing silk that’s strong but not stretchy.

“Spider silk stands as a strategic resource in urgent need of exploration,” said Mi. “The exceptionally high mechanical performance of the fibers produced in this study holds significant promise in this field. This type of fiber can be utilized as surgical sutures, addressing a global demand exceeding 300 million procedures annually.”

The new fibers have broad commercial potential, including in smart materials for the military, aerospace technology, biomedical engineering and garments. The silk produced is six times tougher than the Kevlar used in bulletproof vests.

The researchers now plan to develop genetically modified silkworms that produce spider silk fibers from natural and engineered amino acids.

“The introduction of over one hundred engineered amino acids holds boundless potential for engineered spider silk fibers,” said Mi.

Scientists recently came up with an “inverse vaccine” that has shown it can treat auto-immune diseases in a lab setting, creating hope that doctors will be able to use it to reverse devastating diseases like multiple sclerosis. But the FDA commonly takes years to approve new drugs and vaccines, so thousands will die waiting for the vaccine to be approved.

In other news, artificial wombs could be coming soon, to prevent premature babies from dying or being permanently disabled due to premature life outside the womb.

Doctors are already beginning to do womb transplants. A woman who was previously unable to have children recently received her sister’s womb in the first womb transplant in the United Kingdom.

A new ultrasound therapy could help treat cancer and Alzheimer’s disease and skull implants could fight depression.

Doctors recently did the first robotic liver transplant in America. Robots can fit in small spaces in people’s bodies that a surgeon can’t reach without cutting through living tissue, or doing other collateral damage. Doctors recently used a robot to carry out incredibly complex spinal surgery.

Artificial intelligence is now developing highly-effective antibodies to fight disease. Doctors overseas are using artificial intelligence to detect cases of breast cancer more effectively.

Scientists recently developed a treatment for alcoholism that reduces drinking by 90% among lab monkeys.

LU Staff

LU Staff

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