Spider Silk‐Inspired Artificial Fibers

Li, Jiatian; Li, Sitong; Huang, Jiayi; Khan, A. Q.; An, Baigang; Zhou, Xiang; Liu, Zunfeng; Zhu, Meifang

doi:10.1002/advs.202103965

Cited by 72 publications

(57 citation statements)

References 198 publications

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“…Much of our current understanding of spider silk formation is based on physical and material studies that have provided only a partial picture of its nature 42, 43 . A comprehensive molecular biological atlas of the Ma gland and dragline silk is fundamental to uncovering how spiders make dragline silk fibers 11, 44 .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A comprehensive molecular biological atlas of the Ma gland and dragline silk is fundamental to uncovering how spiders make dragline silk fibers 11, 44 . Additionally, such a detailed basis of silk formation will be valuable for ultratough fiber innovation 5, 8, 42, 45 . Herein, we report the first chromosome-scale reference genome assembly of T. clavata , with a final assembly length of 2.63 Gb.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Molecular atlas reveals the tri-sectional spinning mechanism of spider dragline silk

Jia

Zhang

et al. 2022

Preprint

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We performed the first molecular atlas of natural spider dragline silk production using genome assembly for the golden orb-web spider Trichonephila clavata and multiomics defining for the segmented major ampullate (Ma) gland: Tail, Sac, and Duct. We uncovered a hierarchical biosynthesis of spidroins, organic acids, lipids, and chitin in the sectionalized Ma gland dedicated to fine silk constitution. The ordered secretion of spidroins was achieved by the synergetic regulation of epigenetic and ceRNA signatures for genomic group-distributed spidroin genes. Single-cellular and spatial RNA profiling identified ten cell types with partitioned functional division determining the tri-sectional organization of the Ma gland. Convergent evolution and genetic manipulation analyses further validated that this tri-sectional architecture of the silk gland was analogous in silk-spinning animals and inextricably linked with silk formation. Our study provided multiple levels of data that significantly expand the knowledge of spider dragline silk generation and may eventually benefit spider-inspired fiber innovations.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Molecular atlas reveals the tri-sectional spinning mechanism of spider dragline silk

Jia

Zhang

et al. 2022

Preprint

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“…A comparison of the mechanical properties that can be achieved through recombinant spidroin spinning under denaturing conditions can be found in recent reviews. 3 , 112 …”

Section: Biomimetic Strategiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Complexity of Spider Dragline Silk

et al. 2022

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The tiny spider makes dragline silk fibers with unbeatable toughness, all under the most innocuous conditions. Scientists have persistently tried to emulate its natural silk spinning process using recombinant proteins with a view toward creating a new wave of smart materials, yet most efforts have fallen short of attaining the native fiber’s excellent mechanical properties. One reason for these shortcomings may be that artificial spider silk systems tend to be overly simplified and may not sufficiently take into account the true complexity of the underlying protein sequences and of the multidimensional aspects of the natural self-assembly process that give rise to the hierarchically structured fibers. Here, we discuss recent findings regarding the material constituents of spider dragline silk, including novel spidroin subtypes, nonspidroin proteins, and possible involvement of post-translational modifications, which together suggest a complexity that transcends the two-component MaSp1/MaSp2 system. We subsequently consider insights into the spidroin domain functions, structures, and overall mechanisms for the rapid transition from disordered soluble protein into a highly organized fiber, including the possibility of viewing spider silk self-assembly through a framework relevant to biomolecular condensates. Finally, we consider the concept of “biomimetics” as it applies to artificial spider silk production with a focus on key practical aspects of design and evaluation that may hopefully inform efforts to more closely reproduce the remarkable structure and function of the native silk fiber using artificial methods.

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“…At present, the impact of the shortage of freshwater resources is becoming more and more significant, and it is very important to effectively solve the problem of shortage of freshwater resources [ 1 ]. Fog is a natural freshwater resource, and it is difficult to capture and use, which limits people's research [ 2 , 3 , 4 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%