While would-be goblins and ghosts were preparing to drape
synthetic spider webs over doorways and trees this past Halloween, scientists
in Wyoming
reported on a long-standing mystery about real spider webs: the secret of
spider web glue. The findings are an advance toward a new generation of
bio-based adhesives and glues — “green” glues that replace existing
petroleum-based products for a range of uses. A report on the study was
published in the October 2009 issue of the American Chemical Society's monthly
journal,
Biomacromolecules.
Omer Choresh and colleagues noted that heavy research has been conducted on
spider web silk, which rivals steel in its strength. However, scientists know
comparatively little about web glue, which coats the silk threads and is among
the world’s strongest biological glues. Past studies revealed that spiders make
web glue from glycoproteins, or proteins with bits of sugar attached.
The scientists analyzed web glue from the golden orb weaving spider, noted for
spinning intricate webs. They identified two new glycoproteins in the glue and
showed that domains of these proteins were produced from opposite strands of
the same DNA.
“Once the cloned genes are over-expressed in systems such as insect or
bacterial cell cultures, large-scale production of the glycoprotein can be used
to develop a new bio-based glue for a variety of purposes,” the report noted.
For more information, or to purchase the report, phone (800) 333-9511
or (614) 447-3776, or e-mail service@acs.org.
Source: American Chemical Society
