Team:UCLA/Project/Customizing Silk

From 2014.igem.org

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          <h1>Customizing Silk</h1>
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          <h2>Background</h2>
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          <h2> Biochemistry of Silk</h2>
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          <p>The mechanical properties of spider silk are a result of its primary amino acid sequence. Although the
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amino acid sequences for various types of spider silk are well documented, it is still relatively unknown
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<h1> <font size="5"> PROGRAMMING SILK: CUSTOMIZING ITS PROPERTIES </font> </h1>
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how these amino acids aggregate and contribute to the strength and stability of silk. Silk proteins are
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<p>Spider silk is a remarkable natural material, exhibiting an incredible range of strength and elasticity. Silk-weaving spiders can actually choose from a wide array of silks (such as dragline, capture-spiral, and egg cocoon silk), each having its own unique physical profile and genetic origin. However, one thing that’s common to all silk is that their genes are comprised of highly-repetitive modules. By comparing and the contribution of each type of module to the silk fiber’s physical properties, we can begin to understand how to create a collection of silk modules to build our own gene!
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composed of repeats of short amino acid sequences (approximately 33 amino acids). These repeats can  
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<p>By genetically engineering the repetitive modules, and stringing them together in defined orders and ratios, we can customize the physical properties of the resulting silk fibers. Given the diversity that naturally exists across different types of silk, we can potentially assemble a massive library of silk proteins with an impressive range of strength and elasticity for a variety of applications. We plan on optimizing the compatibility of the iterative capped assembly (ICA) technique for the iGEM competition, creating a standardized method of assembling any highly-repetitive gene fragment in an efficient, user-definable manner. Having a library of silk gene blocks to choose from, and an optimized protocol for assembling them, we can optimize the selection and production of programmable silk with customizable properties.</p>
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be referred to as monomers. Each monomer consists of a glycine rich stretch, followed by an alanine
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rich stretch. It is hypothesized that these hydrophobic alanines form beta sheet crystals with other silk
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proteins, and contribute to the strength of the silk fibers. The glycine stretches are thought to form
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alpha helices and contribute to the flexibility of the protein. This monomer sequence is repeated many
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times in one protein, and allow for strong interactions with other silk proteins. These simple motifs
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repeated over and over are the key to the formation of one of the strongest materials known to man.</p>
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          <h2> Applications</h2>
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          <p>Silk is a naturally strong and flexible material, and so it is a unique fiber that can be used in applications that require the normally contradicting qualities of tremendous strength and low weight. It could be woven into thick cables for heavy industrial use or into fabrics for ballistic protection.
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Silk not only has amazing properties in its strength and elasticity, it is a highly versatile material that can exist in many different forms. For example, its ability to exist as a hydrogel combined with its natural biocompatibility and controlled rate of biodegradation make it a good material for use as an in vivo tissue scaffold. Silk scaffolds could also exist as mesh woven from fibers and used for skin grafts and bandages.  
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<p> Our platform for synthesizing silk is a scalable, eco-friendly solution to the needs of booming industries such as medicine and fashion.  Silk is a popular material for tailoring fine garments, and the ability to modify silk to meet any specification would be an extremely useful tool for textile companies. Silk is also of great interest within the medical field since it does not elicit a strong immune response, and is biodegradable.  Consequently, it has been investigated as a material for use in sutures, grafts, and implants.  These surgical procedures require materials with very specific properties, and the ability to easily modify silk would transform the medical field.</p>
 
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<p> Working with silk on the genetic level gives us the freedom to modify the properties of silk fibers.  But why stop there? What if we could functionalize the silk by fusing it to other genes that encode for fluorescent or therapeutic compounds? </p>
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Revision as of 01:24, 17 October 2014

iGEM UCLA




























Customizing Silk

Background



Biochemistry of Silk

The mechanical properties of spider silk are a result of its primary amino acid sequence. Although the amino acid sequences for various types of spider silk are well documented, it is still relatively unknown how these amino acids aggregate and contribute to the strength and stability of silk. Silk proteins are composed of repeats of short amino acid sequences (approximately 33 amino acids). These repeats can be referred to as monomers. Each monomer consists of a glycine rich stretch, followed by an alanine rich stretch. It is hypothesized that these hydrophobic alanines form beta sheet crystals with other silk proteins, and contribute to the strength of the silk fibers. The glycine stretches are thought to form alpha helices and contribute to the flexibility of the protein. This monomer sequence is repeated many times in one protein, and allow for strong interactions with other silk proteins. These simple motifs repeated over and over are the key to the formation of one of the strongest materials known to man.

Applications

Silk is a naturally strong and flexible material, and so it is a unique fiber that can be used in applications that require the normally contradicting qualities of tremendous strength and low weight. It could be woven into thick cables for heavy industrial use or into fabrics for ballistic protection. Silk not only has amazing properties in its strength and elasticity, it is a highly versatile material that can exist in many different forms. For example, its ability to exist as a hydrogel combined with its natural biocompatibility and controlled rate of biodegradation make it a good material for use as an in vivo tissue scaffold. Silk scaffolds could also exist as mesh woven from fibers and used for skin grafts and bandages.

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