Spiderman will have more kindred spirits if the tests done by the U.S. Army with genetically engineered spider silk prove that it is an effective material for solider protection and they want body armor made of it. Kraig Biocraft Laboratories announced 6 days ago, that it has been awarded a US$100,000 contract to deliver ballistic shoot packs made from their proprietary “Dragon Silk” material for performance tests. If the U.S. Army goes for the option phase, the contract can then have a maximum value of US$1,000,000 and increasing the involvement of the company in research work with the U.S. Army.

In a report from Defense One, the Ann Arbor, Michigan Company has genetically altered silkworks that they produce a fiber that they call “Dragon Silk” and they say is similar to pure spider silk. It has the strength like Kevlar but is lighter and flexible.

“Dragon Silk scores very highly in tensile strength and elasticity, which makes it one of the toughest fibers known to man and the ideal material for many applications,” stated Jon Rice, COO of Kraig Biocraft said in a press release from the company.  “Providing material for this ballistic shoot pack initiative is an important next step for Kraig and spider silk. This contract reinforces the many significant potential applications for recombinant spider silk. Today is a great day for spider silk.”

Photo: Kraig Biocraft Laboratories Spider Silk

While spider silk is tough, it has been hard to produce in commercial quantities given that spiders are cannibalistic that they cannot be raised in colonies to product the silk. With the promise of spider silk having the potential life-saving ballistic material, and much stronger than steel at the same time is thinner and lighter, researches have been looking for ways to harvest spider silk, or material to similar to it.

What the scientists at Kraig labs was to insert spider DNA into silkworms, which can then be raised to produce material similar to spider silk. Silkworms are of course can be raised in colonies that they can produce in commercial quantities to meet the demands of the market.
“Dragon Silk” has a number of applications, such as in the medical field where they can be used as thinner threads for sutures especially in sensitive surgical procedures such as eye and brain surgery.

If the U.S. Army are satisfied with the test and want body armor made of Dragon Silk material, then the troops can expect even lighter and flexible protection. Now, if only they can be provided with a technology that allows them climb walks, then we can talk about the spider soldiers as the future warfighters.