Silk - Physiology
Research News and Information

Monday, November 23, 2009

Spider silk as a novel high performance biomimetic muscle driven by humidity.

29 Jun 2009 The abrupt halt of a bumble bee's flight when it impacts the almost invisible threads of an orb web provides an elegant example of the amazing strength and toughness of spider silk. Spiders depend upon these properties for survival, yet the ... Read more...

How super is supercontraction? Persistent versus cyclic responses to humidity in spider dragline silk.

29 Jun 2009 Spider dragline silk has enormous potential for the development of biomimetic fibers that combine strength and elasticity in low density polymers. These applications necessitate understanding how silk reacts to different environmental conditions. ... Read more...

The scaling of safety factor in spider draglines.

30 Aug 2008 This study documents the effect of body mass on the size and strength of draglines produced by the orb-weaving spider Araneus diadematus and the jumping spider Salticus scenicus. Silk samples obtained from individuals spanning the range from ... Read more...

Latest indexed articles for 'Silk - Physiology'

These are the very latest articles for this heading:

• Spider silk as a novel high performance biomimetic muscle driven by humidity. 29 Jun 2009
• How super is supercontraction? Persistent versus cyclic responses to humidity in spider dragline silk. 29 Jun 2009
• The scaling of safety factor in spider draglines. 30 Aug 2008
• The contribution of axial fiber extensibility to the adhesion of viscous capture threads spun by orb-weaving spiders. 29 Jun 2008
• Spider capture silk: performance implications of variation in an exceptional biomaterial. 30 Oct 2007
• Comparison of tensile and knot security properties of surgical sutures. 12 Jun 2007
• Adhesive recruitment by the viscous capture threads of araneoid orb-weaving spiders. 30 Jan 2007
• The amphiphilic properties of spider silks are important for spinning. 30 Dec 2006
• Spider silk: thousands of nano-filaments and dollops of sticky glue. 5 Nov 2006
• Ballooning dispersal in arthropod taxa with convergent behaviours: dynamic properties of ballooning silk in turbulent flows. 20 Sep 2006
• Molecular mechanisms of spider silk. 30 Aug 2006
• Silk filaments enhance the settlement of stream insect larvae. 21 Aug 2006
• Unraveling the mechanical properties of composite silk threads spun by cribellate orb-weaving spiders. 30 Jul 2006
• DNA fingerprinting using AFLP markers to search for markers associated with yield attributes in the silkworm, Bombyx mori. 30 Dec 2005
• Web-spinning caterpillar stalks snails. 20 Jul 2005
• Ballooning dispersal using silk: world fauna, phylogenies, genetics and models. 30 Mar 2005
• Spider silk proteins--mechanical property and gene sequence. 27 Feb 2005
• Gumfooted lines in black widow cobwebs and the mechanical properties of spider capture silk. 19 Jan 2005
• The Acrolepiopsis assectella silk cocoon: kairomonal function and chemical characterisation. 30 Oct 2004

See a longer list of these articles.

Technical information about 'Silk'

Definition: A continuous protein fiber consisting primarily of FIBROINS. It is synthesized by a variety of INSECTS and ARACHNIDS.

Registry Number: 0

Descriptor UI: D047011

Alternative terms: Silk;

Related Mesh Headings: Bombyx; Sutures; Textiles;

Allowable Qualifiers: administration & dosage; adverse effects; analysis; antagonists & inhibitors; biosynthesis; blood; cerebrospinal fluid; chemical synthesis; classification; deficiency; diagnostic use; drug effects; economics; genetics; history; immunology; isolation & purification; metabolism; pharmacokinetics; pharmacology; physiology; poisoning; radiation effects; secretion; standards; supply & distribution; therapeutic use; toxicity; ultrastructure; urine; chemistry; contraindications; agonists;

Tree Number: D05.750.078.875; D12.776.878;

History Note: 2005; use SILK (NM) 1980 -2004