Scientists mix spiders with goats ("...spins a web, any size...")

News Interactive / News.com.au ^ | Sunday 6.23.02

[mhking]

Scientist mix spiders with goats

23jun02

LONDON: As comic book hero Spider-Man fills cinemas with his webby adventures, prepare to meet an equally astonishing creation - Spidergoat.

Scientists have combined the DNA from a goat and spider to create an animal which produces silk that is five times stronger than steel. The fibre, derived from the goats' milk, harnesses the huge strength of silk spun by spiders.

The breakthrough could be worth millions because the silkmilk fibre can be used to make body armour which is far tougher than normal bullet-proof vests – while weighing little more than a cotton shirt.

The hybrid goats were created by the insertion of a single gene from an orb-weaving spider into a fertilised goat egg.

The amazing genetically-engineered goats are outwardly normal, but carry the gene responsible for production of a spider silk protein. Each goat is only 1/70,000th spider, but when fully grown the females produce a milk which can be treated to produce a fibre with spider-silk strength.

The animals are believed to be the first commercially-viable creatures made from the DNA of two species.

Nexia, the Canadian biotech company which produced the goats, hopes the fibre – dubbed Biosteel – could take a large chunk of the billion-dollar market in industrial fibres.

[mhking]

"Your friendly, neighborhood Spider-Goat..."

[Paul Atreides]

Imagine walking into one of her cobwebs.

[conservatism_IS_compassion]

Wonder how they secure their investment. Sure wouldn't want rustlers to horn in--or Jeremy Rifkin . . .

[weikel]

These spider goats might become a sexual delicacy in the Arab world.

[jimkress]

Yeah, but the 'web' will probably still stink like the goat.

[THEUPMAN]

Your friendly, neighborhood Spider-Goat..." if this is true , it's very troubeling.
remember cudzu..............

[parsifal]

Bahhhh! said the second Billy Goat Gruff. Mr. Troll, you don't want to eat me. My brother is right behind me and he is much bigger and tastier than me.

You may cross the bridge, said the Ugly Troll.

Clippity clop Clippity clop came the third Bill Goat Gruff up the bridge. Bahhhhh, he said and he spun a web and captured the Mean Old Troll. Then the Third Billy Goat Gruff impaled the Troll with his fangs and injected a venomous poison into the Troll, who went into a state of paralysis.

The Three Billy Goats Gruff fed off the Troll all winter and in the spring the hermaphroditic Goats gave birth to a whole new generation of mutant Goats with batlike wings,and they all lived happily ever after.

parsy the story-teller

[Sonny M]

Be carefull when you fool with mother nature, she can sure be a bitch when she's on the rag.

[Still Using Air]

heh. I remember that story. good revision. ;)

[JCG]

Ho, ho, hoax...

America's Fifth Column ... watch PBS documentary JIHAD! In America
Download 8 Mb zip file here (60 minute video)

[goodieD]

Thank goodness the web comes from the milk, I was worried there for a minute. ;)

[Crazymonarch]

Great were now making Hindu Gods

[Jagman]

They should have used sheep: that combination would have been able to knit sweaters in real time!

[Illbay]

Er, don't you mean "Cthulu"?

[Dialup Llama]

Before you know it some dude in a white coat will be mixing orcs with goblin men!

[THEUPMAN]

, don't you mean "Cthulu"?
I have no idea what that is.......

[parsifal]

And you don't want to! Just enjoy life until the Dark Gods return. Stay out of the Northeast. parsy.

[CDHart]

My husband insisted that this was a hoax, but when I got my latest issue of the Smithsonian magazine, there was a story on this research. Very interesting subject.

Carolyn