Ryan Putman, Utah State University
Biological Engineering
Spider silk is a biomaterial with extraordinary physical properties. It has a unique combination of tensile strength, elasticity, and even biocompatibility that has sparked interest in a wide range of disciplines. Potential implementations of spider silk include: medical advances (skin grafts, biomedical sutures, and artificial tendons/ligaments), automotive safety (seat belts, airbags), and military applications (parachutes, body armor). Although spider silk has a great variety of possible uses, collecting this product is not as easy as merely farming spiders and harvesting the silk. Spiders are naturally territorial and cannibalistic, thus alternative means of production are necessary to generate enough spider silk for realistic use. A non-pathogenic laboratory strain of Escherichia coli commonly used for research purposes will be modified to produce synthetic spider silk. Through the use of synthetic biology and molecular cloning techniques, recombinant DNA is inserted with the genetic code for dragline silk of the Argiope aurantia spider; once constructed, this DNA is transformed into E. coli. The goal is to take advantage of E. coli’s ability to be used as a “factory” for creating silk in a controllable and cost efficient system. Supplementation of additional tRNAs will be employed as a strategy to extend cell life and boost the overall spider silk protein yield. Preliminary results have been obtained that show the production of synthetic spider silk by the engineered E. coli. More research is being conducted to increase yields so that we can one day take advantage of this amazing biomaterial.