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Fusion with Spider Silk Increases Anticancer Protein’s Stability
Fusion with Spider Silk Increases Anticancer Protein’s Stability
Scientists found that combining the notoriously flimsy anticancer protein p53 with a domain from a spider silk protein resulted in a more stable hybrid that’s more potent and easier for cells to synthesize.
Scientists found that combining the notoriously flimsy anticancer protein p53 with a domain from a spider silk protein resulted in a more stable hybrid that’s more potent and easier for cells to synthesize.
silk
The Spider Lady, Circa 1939
Natalia Mesa, PhD | Jun 1, 2022 | 3 min read
Nan Songer, a spider expert living in California, played an integral part in the Allies’ success in World War II by supplying silk for bombsights.
Webless Jumping Spiders Spin Super Strong Silk
Chloe Tenn | Nov 12, 2021 | 3 min read
The silk draglines made by zebra jumping spiders are tougher than the silk webbing of orb weaver spiders, even though they’re made at 25 to 35 times the speed.
Slingshot Spiders Pull More Gs than Cheetahs Do
Ashley Yeager | Nov 1, 2020 | 4 min read
Using their silk threads as a catapult, members of a family of orb-weaving arachnids rocket themselves and their webs through the air to capture prey.
Insect Cuticle Aids Spiders’ Traps
Sandhya Sekar | Jun 2, 2017 | 4 min read
Prey stick to orb-weaver spider webs because their waxy outer layers mesh with spider silk to form a matrix glue.
Spinning Recombinant Spider Silk
Jenny Rood | Mar 6, 2015 | 1 min read
Scientists engineer E. coli to produce artificial spider silk.
RNA Determines Sex in Silk Worms
Bob Grant | May 18, 2014 | 1 min read
The finding is the first case of sex determination that does not involve a protein and may one day be a boon to silk manufacturers.
Spider-Man Science
Dan Cossins | Feb 27, 2013 | 2 min read
A team of physics students in the U.K. have worked out that spider silk could be strong and tough enough to stop a moving train.
The Sweet Sounds of Spider Silk
Megan Scudellari | Mar 7, 2012 | 1 min read
A researcher spins spider silk into violin strings.