Okay, heres some wierd stuff.. In a recent (Im guessing) development, This company Has goats they have altered with arachnid DNA.
As we all know, Spider webbing is one of the most amazing substances known to man.. My little 1.5" A. avic has spun a web that would support a couple golf balls.. Now, lay that webbing down on a piece of paper, and you'd see that its probably 1/50 the thickness of the sheet of paper.
Imagine if you could produce "web" in unlimited quantities?
These goats propose just that. The scientists have combined a small fraction of spider DNA (the portion that produces the long-chain, complex protiens spiders make webbing from) with Goat DNA, to have the Female goats milk, contain a high percentage of "spider web" protien. These goats are approx 1/70,000 Spider
The protiens are then purified (not unlike how insulin protiens are purified from pigs for our use) and extruded in a micro-mechanical contraption that simulates a spiders spinnerettes, thereby alligning the protiens the same way a real arachnid does, and producing a virtually unlimited amount of webbing..
What does all this do? you may ask?
Imagine a bullet-proof "vest" ... Now, imagine a bullet-proof T-shirt...
Thinking yet?
Pretty interesting stuff.. Might be a good read..
-Jason
As we all know, Spider webbing is one of the most amazing substances known to man.. My little 1.5" A. avic has spun a web that would support a couple golf balls.. Now, lay that webbing down on a piece of paper, and you'd see that its probably 1/50 the thickness of the sheet of paper.
Imagine if you could produce "web" in unlimited quantities?
These goats propose just that. The scientists have combined a small fraction of spider DNA (the portion that produces the long-chain, complex protiens spiders make webbing from) with Goat DNA, to have the Female goats milk, contain a high percentage of "spider web" protien. These goats are approx 1/70,000 Spider
The protiens are then purified (not unlike how insulin protiens are purified from pigs for our use) and extruded in a micro-mechanical contraption that simulates a spiders spinnerettes, thereby alligning the protiens the same way a real arachnid does, and producing a virtually unlimited amount of webbing..
What does all this do? you may ask?
Imagine a bullet-proof "vest" ... Now, imagine a bullet-proof T-shirt...
Thinking yet?
Pretty interesting stuff.. Might be a good read..
-Jason