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Tag: "spider" at biology news

Fascinating spider silk

Stronger than steel and more elastic than rubber: spider silk is unsurpassed in its expandability, resistan...pinning process. Fundamentally, the spinning of spider silk represents a phase change from a solution into a solid thread; but the exact details of this pr...

A rarity among arachnids, whip spiders have a sociable family life

... their own. Rayor suspects that benefits of whip spider social behavior include enhanced safety from predators. Although there are few reports of other creatures eating them, a mother nearby may offer young amblypygids some protection. When Rayor disturbed D. diadema youngsters, they gathered closer to ...

New study may show how to forestall a fatal, virus-caused immune-system meltdown

... senior authors. “Cell signaling networks are like spider webs—pulling on one strand causes all the strands to move, and the Ingenuity system helped us see and comprehend connections we would have missed otherwise.? Connecting those strands is critical to diagnosing and restoring balance to an immune syst...

Tarantula venom and chili peppers target same pain sensor

...e pain. The researchers examined venoms from 22 spider and scorpion species whose bites are known to caus...se pain. They also showed that venom from a second spider activated TRPV1, but they did not pinpoint which peptides were responsible. The fact that a secon...

Ground spider diversity studied in research project

...arning a master's degree, has been studying ground spider diversity, distribution and abundance in the 515-a...ing spiders." For people who think the only good spider is a dead spider, Henderson has this to say: A diverse spider population signifies a healthy habitat...

Tarantulas produce silk from their feet

...or change in our evolutionary hypothesis regarding spider silk," Summers said. "It could mean that silk prod...aws. However, the scientists noticed that when the spider started to slip down the surface, it produced silk from all four pairs of legs, allowing it to adher...

MIT engineers probe spiders' polymer art

...as identified two key physical processes that lend spider silk its unrivaled strength and durability, bringi...eality the long-sought goal of spinning artificial spider silk. Manufactured spider silk could be used for artificial tendons and ligaments, sutures, parachu...

Proteins as parents

... about the highly elastic and extremely tear-proof spider dragline silk. Molecules with defined mechanical properties are especially needed for the assembly of nanotechnological devices. A team from the University of British Columbia (Vancouver, Canada) succeeded in producing proteins with new mechanical pr...

Study shows pine bark naturally decreases severe chronic venous insufficiency

... prevent travel-related DVT. Like varicose veins, spider veins also develop if edema is left untreated. "...edema with Pycnogenol® prevents the development of spider veins. Pycnogenol® also helps prevent existing spider veins from getting larger and more prominent. ...

Evolution mystery: Spider venom and bacteria share same toxin

...nd of a barrel-shaped enzyme--is evidence that the spider and bacterium share a relatively recent common anc... whether this venom enzyme hopped species from the spider to the bacteria, or the other way around. Either way, the presence of this medically-relevant toxin ...

Hanging baskets of sex and death help fruit growers

...ations of other beneficial insects such as the red spider mite which would occur if growers used pesticides. Extended virus life - The virus does not fare well in direct sunlight. Growers who currently spray the virus find it quickly becomes ineffective and it has to re-sprayed several times in order to co...

Spider blood found in 20 million year old fossil

...er has discovered the first identified droplets of spider blood in a piece of amber up to 20 million years o...een preserved in the amber which also contains the spider - Filistatidae - a family commonly found in South America and the Caribbean. The droplets are the f...

Primates on the brink

... Northern muriqui (Brachyteles hypoxanthus) Brown spider monkey (Ateles hybridus brunneus) Colombia Horton Plains slender loris (Loris lydekkerianus nycticeboides) Sri Lanka Miller's grizzled surili (Presbytis hosei canicrus) Indonesia (Kalimantan) Pagai pig-tailed snub-nosed monkey (Simias concolor) In...

Spider Venom Could Yield Eco-Friendly Insecticides

...redators -- spiders. The Blue Mountains funnel-web spider (Hadronyche versuta) -- a large Australian spider with a bite that is deadly to humans and insects -- is an ideal source of venom for King's research....

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