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Reprinted with permission from вЂњMicrobially Synthesized Polymeric Amyloid Fiber Promotes ОІвЂђNanocrystal Formation and Displays Gigapascal Tensile Strength.вЂќ Copyright 2021. This makes the proteinвЂ™s building blocks fold and arrange into fibers.ДЄ bundle of synthetic spider silken fibers, here, is the final result of gathering protein from the bacteria, then processing them into threads. Then they push that solution through a fine hole into a second solution. This mimics the liquid silk in a spiderвЂ™s abdomen. First, they dissolve the protein powder in a solution. Scientists cannot yet copy the web-spinning action of a spiderвЂ™s spinnerets. Spinning the fiber and testing its strength When clumped, it looks and feels like white cotton candy, Li says. Then the researchers turned it into a powder. Afterward, as hoped, this microbe made the hybrid protein. Starting with the spiderвЂ™s DNA, the researchers subtly tweaked it in the lab before inserting into the bacteria. This web must be tough enough to hold any insect prey it catches, together with the weaver - which can reach 7 centimeters (nearly 3 inches) long - and her mate. But it is stronger and stretchier than steel. The dragline silk that holds up their webs appears to be delicate floss. These females spin some of the largest webs in forests of the southern United States. ItвЂ™s also known as a banana spider or golden silk spider. ThatвЂ™s a common bacterium found in the environment and the human gut.ДЇor that DNA, the engineers turned to the female golden orb weaver ( Trichonephila clavipes). The team chose to work with Escherichia coli. The researchers started by inserting a piece of foreign DNA into the bacteria.

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His team decided to harness these single-cells microbes to make its hybrid protein.ДNA is the genetic code that gives all individuals their traits. Li likens the microbes to вЂњlittle factoriesвЂќ for proteins. Common bacteria have been making proteins in science labs for years. Polymers are chain-like molecules made of repeating links. Once dissolved to make a concentrated solution, it can be spun to make silk threads. That gave those microbes the cellular instructions for an artificially designed protein, shown here. Researchers inserted genetic material from a spider into bacteria. They called this hybrid an amyloid-protein polymer. Li and his boss at Washington University, Fuzhong Zhang, wondered if they could combine amyloid with spidroin to make a very long hybrid protein that would readily shape itself into nanocrystals. LiвЂ™s team also knew one particular protein - amyloid (AM-ih-loyd) - can boost crystal-making. This created a structure with lots of nanocrystals. Explains Li, вЂњWhat happens in the spiderвЂ™s silk gland is quite complex and super delicate - difficult to fully reproduce.вЂќДЄ few years ago, a fellow researcher, fused two sets of spidroin proteins. Explainer: What are proteins?ДЄ common problem scientists have faced is creating fibers with enough nanocrystals to form silk.

The more nanocrystals in a fiber, the stronger the silk thread will be. Spanning a few billionths of a meter (yard) across, these crystals are the source of spider silkвЂ™s strength. Silk-protein molecules are arranged in a tight, repeating structure called a nanocrystal. Spinnerets, body parts on the spiderвЂ™s rear end, spin the liquid into long threads.

A spiderвЂ™s silk-making proteins, called spidroins, form in its abdomen as a dense liquid. Proteins are the complex molecules that give living things their structure and function.

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