Sigma, Kraig Team To Produce Spider Silk Using Silkworms

摘要

Sigma Life Science - the biological products and services research business of St. Louis-based Sigma-Aldrich Corp. - and Kraig Biocraft Laboratories Inc., Lansing, Mich. -a developer of recombina'nt technologies and fibers - have signed a licensing agreement under which Kraig will use Sigma's CompoZr~® Zinc Finger Nuclease (ZFN) technology to transfer spider silk genes to silkworms, with the goal of commercializing spider silk production. Silk from spiders has been shown to have greater tensile strength and elasticity than silk from silkworms. Potential applications include sutures and other biomedical products, bulletproof vests, and automobile airbags.