Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent every weekday. Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Silk is a fabulous fabric, but it’s also a material that can do so ...

Researchers have successfully produced the first full-length spider silk by genetically modifying silkworms using CRISPR, a significant advancement for the sustainable production of lightweight ...

Spider silk—six times tougher than Kevlar and stronger than steel—has now been produced by an unexpected source. Spider silk is a biological protein fiber spun by spiders. Many of these fibers have ...

Spider silk is an unparalleled material: It’s strong and tough, yet also lightweight and flexible. But getting spiders to mass-produce their silk for commercial purposes has proven nearly impossible.

Silkworms have been genetically engineered with CRISPR to produce pure spider silk for the first time. The worms could offer a scalable way to create things like surgical thread or bulletproof vests ...

Spiders hold the market for the strongest silks but are too aggressive and territorial to be farmed. The next best alternative involves incorporating spider DNA into silkworms, an expensive and ...

For the first time, scientists have successfully produced full-length spider silk fibers using genetically modified silkworms. With high strength and toughness, this silk has the potential to provide ...

Tougher than steel, lighter than cotton, and stubbornly elusive to produce. For decades, spider silk has been the material science has long promised but never quite delivered at scale. Now, a Michigan ...

Dissolving silkworm silk and remaking it in a solution of sugar and zinc and iron metal ions has made it stronger than most spider silk, one of the toughest and strongest materials in nature. There ...

Stephen has degrees in science (Physics major) and arts (English Literature and the History and Philosophy of Science), as well as a Graduate Diploma in Science Communication. Stephen has degrees in ...