it could be used in advances in artificial ligaments, surgical sutures, and hernia meshes. While other spider threads rely on one protein, this one combines two, with protein structures that build ...

They are constructed as a sheet of closely woven silk but can have looser threads. There are typically silk trip-lines that alert the waiting spider to the presence of prey. It then rushes out and ...

The process of creating a web is a delicate and methodical task. A spider begins by releasing a silk thread into the wind, allowing it to attach to a surface. This initial strand forms the ...

Thanks to Tufts researchers, there’s now a solution that shoots, solidifies and even picks up objects. Alas, you can’t use it ...

When a US research lab accidentally created a sticky, web-like substance, it turned to Peter Parker and comic-book lore for ...

While spider silk proteins are something you can make in your garage, making useful drag line fibers has proved a daunting challenge. Now, a team of scientists from Japan and Hong Kong are closer ...

which makes up the radial threads of the web. Using mass spectrometry, the team identified 18 proteins in the major silk fibers, including six not previously linked to spider silk. Although the team ...

Scientists are creating artificial spider silk by drawing strands from an array of tiny hollow needles, as shown here, similar to how arachnids do it. Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not ...

Dragline silk, the thread by which the spider hangs itself from the web, is one of the strongest fibers; its tensile strength—a measure of how much a polymer deforms when strained—is almost thrice ...

Spider silk’s potential A decade ago ... the radial lines in webs and also when spiders suspend themselves by a thread. This variety, known for its toughness and mechanical usefulness, allowed ...

While spider silk proteins are something you can make in your garage, making useful drag line fibers has proved a daunting challenge. Now, a team of scientists from Japan and Hong Kong are closer ...