Get ready for armoured underwear made from spider silk

Researchers in the US have genetically engineered silkworms to produce spider silk, and they're calling their commerical product Monster Silk.

Cost effective production of spider silk is pretty costly when you get it the regular way. You know, from a spider. But now scientists at the US-based Kraig Biocraft Laboratories have figured out how to get spider silk from the silkworm.

Because spider silk is stronger and lighter than the fibre used in most fabrics, scientists have been exploring a wide range of application for it, including body armour, medical sutures, andaccording to Jordan Golson at Wired, even underwear.

But not just any underwear, underwear for soldiers that can protect them from explosions. This is because spider silk won't melt and stick onto the skin, even when exposed to extreme heat. And because it's so fine, it can keep any wounds clean by blocking out dirt and sand particles.

“Our production system is the only commercially viable technology for producing spider silk,” Kim Thompson, Kraig’s founder and CEO, told Wired. 

They've managed to get the silkworms to produce spider silk is by inserting specific genes from spiders into the silkworm's chromosomes. The silkworms then produce a fibre that's identical to spider silk. All it takes to adjust the silk's flexibility and strength is shifting the DNA sequence around.

"Kraig’s current production run is largely headed to Warwick Mills, a specialty textile manufacturer that focuses on protective applications like body armor and fireproof wearables,"says Golson at Wired. "They are making the first Monster Silk textiles, and their research will lay the groundwork for the first commercial sales as soon as next year."