Close Menu
  • News
  • Medical
  • Technology
  • Nanomaterials
  • Research
  • Blog
    • Nasiol.com
  • Contact
    • Tech7685@gmail.com
What's Hot

Ballistic electrons chart a new course for next-gen terahertz devices

June 6, 2025

‘Stealthy’ lipid nanoparticles give mRNA vaccines a makeover

June 5, 2025

Single-layer waveguide display uses achromatic metagratings for more compact augmented reality eyewear

June 5, 2025
Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram
Nanotech – Nanomaterials | Medical | Research | News Stories Updated Daily Nanotech – Nanomaterials | Medical | Research | News Stories Updated Daily
  • News
  • Medical
  • Technology
  • Nanomaterials
  • Research
  • Blog
    • Nasiol.com
  • Contact
    • Tech7685@gmail.com
Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram
Nanotech – Nanomaterials | Medical | Research | News Stories Updated Daily Nanotech – Nanomaterials | Medical | Research | News Stories Updated Daily
Home»News»Spinning artificial spider silk into next-generation medical materials
News

Spinning artificial spider silk into next-generation medical materials

October 3, 2024No Comments3 Mins Read
Facebook Twitter Pinterest Telegram LinkedIn Tumblr WhatsApp Email
Spinning artificial spider silk into next-generation medical materials
Share
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Telegram Email
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. Credit: ACS Nano (2024). DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.4c08557

It’s almost time to dust off the Halloween decorations and adorn the house with all manner of spooky things, including the classic polyester spider webs. Scientists reporting in ACS Nano have made their own version of fake spider silk, but this one consists of proteins and heals wounds instead of haunting hallways. The artificial silk was strong enough to be woven into bandages that helped treat joint injuries and skin lesions in mice.

Spider silk is one of the strongest materials on Earth, technically stronger than steel for a material of its size. However, it’s tough to obtain—spiders are too territorial (and cannibalistic) to breed them like silkworms, leading scientists to turn to artificial options.

Teaching microbes to produce the spider silk proteins through genetic engineering is one such option, but this has proved challenging because the proteins tend to stick together, reducing the silk’s yield. So, Bingbing Gao and colleagues wanted to modify the natural protein sequence to design an easily spinnable, yet still stable, spider silk using microbes.

The team first used these microbes to produce the silk proteins, adding extra peptides as well. The new peptides, following a pattern found in the protein sequence of amyloid polypeptides, helped the artificial silk proteins form an orderly structure when folded and prevented them from sticking together in solution, increasing their yield.

Then, using an array of tiny, hollow needles attached to the nozzle of a 3D printer, the researchers drew the protein solution into thin strands in the air and spun them together into a thicker fiber. This setup acted like a giant artificial spider spinning its web.

Spinning artificial spider silk into next-generation medical materials
Credit: ACS Nano (2024). DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.4c08557

They then wove their artificial silk fibers into prototype wound dressings that they applied on mice with osteoarthritis (a degenerative joint disease) and chronic wounds caused by diabetes. Drug treatments were easily added to the dressings, and the team found these modified dressings boosted wound healing better than traditional bandages.

See also  Nanoparticle technique gauges bite force in tiny C. elegans worms

Compared with a control group with neutral dressings, mice with osteoarthritis showed decreased swelling and repaired tissue structure after 2 weeks of treatment, while diabetic mice with skin lesions treated with a similar dressing showed significant wound healing after 16 days of treatment. The new silken bandages are biocompatible and biodegradable, and the researchers say that they show promise for future applications in medicine.

Provided by
American Chemical Society



Source link

Artificial materials Medical NextGeneration silk Spider Spinning
Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email

Related Posts

Ballistic electrons chart a new course for next-gen terahertz devices

June 6, 2025

‘Stealthy’ lipid nanoparticles give mRNA vaccines a makeover

June 5, 2025

Single-layer waveguide display uses achromatic metagratings for more compact augmented reality eyewear

June 5, 2025

2D hybrid material integrates graphene and silica glass for next-generation electronics

June 4, 2025

Zeolite nanopore model links crystal size to metal cluster migration and catalyst performance

June 4, 2025

Spontaneous symmetry breaking in electron systems proves elusive

June 3, 2025

Comments are closed.

Top Articles
News

Finely regulated luminescent Ag-In-Ga-S quantum dots with green-red dual emission toward white LEDs

Research

SBIR and STTR Grants: Fuelling Innovation in Nanotechnology for Investors

Medical

New artificial DNA structures can target and destroy cancer cells

Editors Picks

Ballistic electrons chart a new course for next-gen terahertz devices

June 6, 2025

‘Stealthy’ lipid nanoparticles give mRNA vaccines a makeover

June 5, 2025

Single-layer waveguide display uses achromatic metagratings for more compact augmented reality eyewear

June 5, 2025

2D hybrid material integrates graphene and silica glass for next-generation electronics

June 4, 2025
About Us
About Us

Your go-to source for the latest nanotechnology breakthroughs. Explore innovations, applications, and implications shaping the future at the molecular level. Stay informed, embrace the nano-revolution.

We're accepting new partnerships right now.

Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram Pinterest
Our Picks

Metallic nanosheets curl into nanovesicles

August 11, 2024

Is it Worth Investing in Graphene?

April 26, 2024

Scientists develop deep learning-based biosensing platform to better count viral particles

October 24, 2023

Subscribe to Updates

Get the latest creative Nano Tech news from Elnano.com

© 2025 Elnano.com - All rights reserved.
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

Cleantalk Pixel