| Hunting spiders easily climb vertical surfaces or move upside down on the ceiling. A thousand tiny hairs at the ends of their legs make sure they do not fall off. Like the spider’s exoskeleton, these bristle-like hairs (so-called setae) mainly consist of proteins and chitin, which is a polysaccharide. | |
| To find out more about their fine structure, an interdisciplinary research team from the Biology and Physics departments at Kiel University and the Helmholtz-Zentrum Geesthacht (HZG) examined the molecular structure of these hairs in closer detail. Using highly energetic X-ray light, the researchers discovered that the chitin molecules of the setae are specifically arranged to withstand the stresses of constant attachment and detachment. | |
| Their findings could be the basis for highly resilient future materials. They have been published in the current issue of the Journal of the Royal Society Interface (“Hierarchical architecture of spider attachment setae reconstructed from scanning nanofocus X-ray diffraction data.”).
The tiny contact plates on the spider legs, which are only a few hundred nanometres in size, are subject to great forces when the spider is running or climbing. However, these adhesive structures easily withstand the heavy strain. “In comparison, artificially produced materials tend to break more often,” says Professor Stanislav N. Gorb from the Zoological Institute at Kiel University. “That’s why we want to find out what makes spider legs so stable in resisting strong pull off forces.” Together with the members of his “Functional Morphology and Biomechanics” working group, the zoologist investigates mechanisms of biological adhesion and how they could be transferred in artificial materials and surfaces. Gorb and his colleague, the zoologist and biomechanist Dr Clemens Schaber, assumed that the secret behind the stability of spider adhesive hairs lies in the molecular structure of their material. Given the hairs’ small dimensions in the lower micrometre range, however, it is impossible to investigate their molecular material architecture using conventional methods. |
Image Credit: Cheetah 100
News This Week
Paradoxical replacement tissue for medicine
A material that thickens when you pull on it seems to contradict the laws of physics. However, the so-called auxetic effect, which also occurs in nature, is interesting for a number of applications. [...]
What if aging weren’t inevitable, but a curable disease?
Each Cyclops had a single eye because, legend has it, the mythical giants traded the other one with the god Hades in return for the ability to see into the future. But Hades tricked [...]
Chemistry in the turbulent interstellar medium
Over 200 molecules have been discovered in space, some (like Buckminsterfullerene) very complex with carbon atoms. Besides being intrinsically interesting, these molecules radiate away heat, helping giant clouds of interstellar material cool and contract [...]
Metal-organic framework captures and converts toxic air pollutant into industrial chemical
An international team of scientists, led by the University of Manchester, has developed a metal-organic framework, or MOF, material that provides a selective, fully reversible and repeatable capability to capture a toxic air pollutant, [...]
Jamilee Baroud Podcast – Jamilee interviews Robin Farmanfarmaian author of “The Patient as CEO”
This week Jamilee interviews Robin Farmanfarmaian. She is a professional speaker and entrepreneur, author of "The Patient as CEO" and "The Thought Leader Formula". Robin is the CEO and Co-founder of ArO. From Jamilee's [...]
Directional control of self-propelled protocells
Synthetic protocells can be made to move toward and away from chemical signals, an important step for the development of new drug-delivery systems that could target specific locations in the body. By coating the [...]
Silver and titanium nanomaterials present in wastewater may have toxic effects on crustaceans and fish cells
You may not always think about it when you do your laundry or flush the toilet; but whatever you eat, wear or apply on your skin ends up in wastewater and eventually reaches the [...]
NMIN’s first round of research investment
An update from the NanoMedicines Innovation Network (NMIN): On August 21, 2019, the Board of Directors approved NMIN's initial investments of $4.3M in nanomedicines research. Over a two-year period, NMIN will support [...]
Researchers design ‘intelligent’ metamaterial to make MRIs affordable and accessible
Boston University researchers have developed a new, "intelligent" metamaterial – which costs less than ten dollars to build – that could revolutionize magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), making the entire MRI process faster, safer, and [...]
World-leading microscopes take candid snapshots of atoms in their ‘neighborhoods
We can directly see the hidden world of atoms thanks to electron microscopes, first developed in the 1930s. Today, electron microscopes, which use beams of electrons to illuminate and magnify a sample, have become [...]
Jamilee Baroud Podcast – Frank Boehm (NA Founder) Interview
In her inaugural podcast, Jamilee interviews Frank Boehm of NanoApps Medical Inc and NanoApps Athletics Inc. From Jamilee's podcast: Welcome to the first episode of "In a Click". On todays show I chat with [...]
Updated – Worldwide Press for “Human Brain/Cloud Interface”
“We’ll have nanobots that… connect our neocortex to a synthetic neocortex in the cloud. Our thinking will be a…. biological and non-biological hybrid.” Ray Kurzweil, TED 2014 UPDATE - October 30 2019 Since [...]
Scientists Demonstrate Direct Brain-to-Brain Communication in Humans
We humans have evolved a rich repertoire of communication, from gesture to sophisticated languages. All of these forms of communication link otherwise separate individuals in such a way that they can share and express [...]
New Ultrasensitive Optical Nanoprobes to Monitor Bioelectric Activity of Neurons
Ultrasensitive nanoscale optical probes have been created by scientists from UC Santa Cruz, to observe the bioelectric activity of neurons and other excitable cells. This innovative readout technology could allow researchers to analyze how [...]
Potential Nanotechnology Treatment for Celiac Disease Revealed
Advances made during recent clinical trials mean that those suffering from celiac disease may soon be able to reintroduce gluten back into their diet. This breakthrough is down to a progressive new treatment that [...]
Prime editing: DNA tool could correct 89% of genetic defects
A new way of editing the code of life could correct 89% of the errors in DNA that cause disease, say US scientists. The technology, called prime editing, has been described as a "genetic [...]
Leave A Comment