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Updated: May 2, 2026

Material Formation of Recombinant Spider Silks through Aqueous Solvation using Heat and Pressure
Published on: May 6, 2019
Effect of sequence features on assembly of spider silk block copolymers
Olena S Tokareva1, Shangchao Lin2, Matthew M Jacobsen3
1Department of Biomedical Engineering, Tufts University, Medford, MA 02155, USA.
Abstract:
Bioengineered spider silk block copolymers were studied to understand the effect of protein chain length and sequence chemistry on the formation of secondary structure and materials assembly. Using a combination of in vitro protein design and assembly studies, we demonstrate that silk block copolymers possessing multiple repetitive units self-assemble into lamellar microstructures. Additionally, the study provides insights into the assembly behavior of spider silk block copolymers in concentrated salt solutions.
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