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Money4Nothing: “The last photo in the PR shows a huge pile of cocoons without holes. Do they pull them off the trays to let them emerge somewhere else? Or do they let them emerge on those racks.
“Or is that big pile in the photo headed for the boiling water?”
Good questions. I’ve always assumed the cocoons were removed from the spinning racks before hatching, but that may not be the case.
There are apparently a couple of methods that can turn cocoons back into ‘goo.’ This can be done on hatched cocoons and is potentially a way to use the silk in other applications. The ratio is about 150:1, but if you think of raising 5.5 million silkworms for a metric ton of silk, that still leaves you with around 40,000 cocoons that could be used for goo purposes.
Welcome baack. I ee you found the log out and log in button.
Once again, thanks for sharing DD about KBLB’s competitors. Always useful to me to keep track of what they are up to.
No. That’s not what I’m getting at.
I’m suggesting that last photo may be for production and not breeding stock because there are no holes in them
Was wondering if you’d bother to move the cocoons off those racks if you’re going to let the moths emerge.
They may or may not. I can’t find any info on exactly where they would let the moths emerge if that were the plan. I’d think they’d stay put.
Those cocoons pictured have obviously been collected. Would you collect them if they are breeding stock? or leave them on the racks, let them be, and collect the eggs from the same trays.
Some may have missed this……,
“DOD Launches Distributed Bioindustrial Manufacturing Program to Bolster Domestic Supply Chains
Jan. 31, 2024
“The Department expects to announce awards in May for approximately 30 proposals, which will each receive up to $2 million to deliver a business and technical plan detailing how they intend to build a U.S. bioindustrial manufacturing production facility. Selected proposals will be eligible for follow on efforts as part of the OUSD A&S five year investment plan for the Department's bioindustrial manufacturing base. “
I’m just thankful to be in at this level! Because Kraig is now well established and ready!!!
Don’t forget that the DoD will start announcing company awards for seeding US infrastructure next week…..
Hey webby...how ya been? Where ya been?
Is that all you could come up with? Wow, I'm impressed bro. That's says alot! Maybe more than the PR itself! I'm ALL IN....LOL🤣😂
The Douchebag CEO said that the trial isn't finished, and that they will be letting the silkworms break out of their cocoons (therefore ruining them) in order to let them breed and create the BAM-1 hybrid. That will entail breeding Parent 1 with Parent 2.
I'm not sure how they will prevent Parent 1 from breeding with Parent 1 or Parent 2 from breeding with Parent 2.
If they are manually separating each Parent line by gender, then that will take a HUGE amount of man-hours and increase expenses exponentially.
If the word is out and some think that the pps could get to 0.15PPS by the end of April and 1.00PPS till end of June 2024 why dont we see that Volume wise , PPS wise, Social Media wise , Neswpaper wise in VM and U.S i hope it will get there but i can not see any indection - The worse thing for KBLB - IMO- is the OTC could it be also the best thing for it once things get to the place KT wants it to be at in 2024?!? Time will tell ...Good luck to us long term. P.S why does NITE - MM blocks the prices each day? will they be run over whhen news comes?
“I hear there is much chatter in Vietnam of folks anxious to get possession of the new eggs. Word spreads fast.“
Makes sense the entire industry in Vietnam, and likely every silk producing country would want those premium eggs. I believe anyone getting eggs is under contract to produce the spider silk for Kraig. We are in control. Just think of all the partnerships we have signed to jointly develop products!!
These 3 alone would take a huge amount of our Spider Silk for quite a while…..
-Warwick Mills = Military and NASA+++
-Polartech = Military Clothing. And most big brands +
-Spydasilk = Luxury Streetwear
Then we have Medical products being developed, but yet to see a contract…this will be amazing imo
All of Kraig’s partners are Based on we supply the spider silk, they develop the products, we split profits. And with just those 4 the numbers will be crazy$$
This was our first partnership. Premature, yes, but NOW the Spider Silk is ready to flow….
KRAIG BIOCRAFT LABORATORIES AND WARWICK MILLS SIGN STRATEGIC JOINT DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT
Joint Intellectual Property Agreement Covers the Collaborative Development of Spider Silk Based Textiles
LANSING, Mich., Oct 21, 2013– Kraig Biocraft Laboratories, Inc. (OTCQB: KBLB)
“Under terms of the agreement, the two companies will jointly develop innovative textile products based on Kraig’s Monster Silk(TM) fibers. Under the terms of the agreement, the two companies will jointly own textile product related intellectual property which is developed as a result of the collaboration. “
"I'll remain with the TRUTH. "
Which is it? All the years you stated how great KBLB was or the years since you got booted out of what you thought to be the inner circle?
You keep bringing up the past....... but with very selective memory. Very. You call them truths when you know you aren't presenting a full picture nor an untainted picture. If you aren't getting paid you are really a package. This has made many to come to know you as Curbie.
YMIGH!!!
Oh I know! It's good the company continues to refute all attempts to rewrite its history. I just wish the naysayers would give it up. Maybe it's therapeutic for them? Lord knows they need therapy! LOL
Kim said yesterday…
“Over the next two weeks the Company will collect the moths from these cocoons to breed the next generation of production hybrid silkworms and conclude the critical parental line trial.”
Ok. But, when the moths emerge from the cocoons they leave a big hole in it rendering the silk useless.
The last photo in the PR shows a huge pile of cocoons without holes. Do they pull them off the trays to let them emerge somewhere else? Or do they let them emerge on those racks.
Or is that big pile in the photo headed for the boiling water?
Dadofduck
where are you?
what do you know?
are you hearing anything?
are u still in Vietnam?
And yankeeclipper, zinkfinger are you guys still following KB?
It's clear to see that I did. 💯
From the january 26th PR.
Did you really bring up Q&A from 2015? What was the goal? Hoping people wouldn’t notice it is 10 years old, 10 years behind the advancements they have seen?
So we are clear, your posts are focused on Spiber, AmSilk and now attempting to mislead investors on where Kim Thompson feels the company is TODAY?
Curious have you see the relevance of statements from almost 10 years ago?
And again raising the issue of testing. Can you provide ANY technical and performance data on the NON-SPIDER SILK MATERIALS your beloved Spiber and AMSilk have been working on? Any testing data at all would be a great start.
I know this is getting hard to watch for you. KBLB is continuing to advance without you while the goo making “competition” continues to flounder.
Might be time for a new hobby. Harassing KBLB and its investors likely won’t be as much fun, or effective, as we move FORWARD.
Sorry to disappoint..
Ignorance is not the company's fault. Neither is deliberately choosing not to understand. That axe gets duller and duller with each deliberate misinterpretation. Failing to understand then, and continuing to do so up to today, is on those choosing that path. Not the company. That's the deja vu of things. Repeated deliberate misinterpretations over and over again.
AMSilk STRENGTHENS MANAGEMENT TEAM WITH KEY HIRES OF RALPH FRAUNDOFER AND CTIBOR KOHUTOVIC TO MANAGEMENT BOARD
NEWS PROVIDED BY AMSilk Apr, 23, 2024-3 HOURS AGO
PR
NEURIED, Germany, April 23, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- AMSilk GmbH ("AMSilk"), a global leader in advanced materials made from spider silk-based proteins, today announces the appointments of Ralph Fraundorfer and Ctibor Kohutovic to its Management Board starting immediately.
Ralph Fraundorfer has been appointed as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and will lead the finance team, with responsibility for all financial issues, such as company accounts, financing and risk management. Ralph's professional finance career spans over 20 years, having worked for companies such as Shell, Syngenta and Actelion Pharmaceuticals.
Most recently, Ralph was CFO of Tropic Biosciences, a pioneering company in the field of agricultural gene editing, where he built the finance function, enabling strong growth from 40 to over 150 employees and successfully closing several financing rounds.
Ralph Fraundorfer officially succeeds Arne Treinies as CFO, with Arne leaving the Company to pursue other opportunities. "We would like to thank Arne for his important contribution to the scale-up of AMSilk", Ulrich Scherbel (CEO) says. "In his role as CFO he has professionally built up the finance and organizational structures of the Company. We wish him continuous success and all the best for his new challenges."
Ctibor Kohutovic joins as Chief Production Officer (CPO), with responsibility for driving AMSilk's industrial scale up as it moves into the commercialization phase. Ctibor will focus on the Company's global protein production, developing production capacities with new and existing CMOs, improving capabilities and reducing costs.
Ctibor has extensive experience in global production processes, process improvement and contract manufacturing, beginning his professional career at Evonik in 1998 as a Fermentation Process Engineer at the Fermas site. Most recently, he was Head of Strategic Projects at Evonik Operations, as well as Site Controller and Strategic Project Manager at Evonik Fermas.
The key appointments of Ralph and Ctibor complete the AMSilk Management Board, alongside current Chief Executive Officer, Ulrich Scherbel, and Chief Scientific Officer, Gudrun Vogtentanz.
Ulrich Scherbel, Chief Executive Officer at AMSilk, said: "Ralph and Ctibor are two proven experts, whose industry knowledge, experience and track record are of immense importance for the future development of AMSilk. These appointments complete our Management Board, and I look forward to working alongside them both to drive the Company's continued industrial scale-up towards profitability."
Ralph Fraundorfer, Chief Financial Officer at AMSilk, added: "AMSilk has a stellar team and I am looking forward to helping scale up production of a fantastic product that the world really needs. AMSilk has products with a real purpose and people with great passion. For me, these are the most important elements of a successful company, and AMSilk has them all."
Ctibor Kohutovic, Chief Production Officer at AMSilk, said: "Joining AMSilk feels like the perfect alignment of my passions, expertise, and aspirations. AMSilk's vision and potential are truly inspiring. I am very motivated to play my part in ramping up production so that we can launch our spider silk-based products to the market."
Wolfgang Colberg, Chairman of the Board, AMSilk, commented: "AMSilk is at a pivotal point in its development. To attract individuals of this caliber to the Management Board is testament to the progress AMSilk has made towards its goal of becoming a leading protein solutions business for a variety of industries."
AMSilk's spider silk-based protein fibers are the gold standard, offering high-performance qualities which translate to a wide range of applications in the textile and automobile industries. Based on their exceptional natural properties, which can be tailored to the specific needs of the market or customer, AMSilk's high-performance material outweigh many natural or fossil-based materials, while being verifiably biodegradable.
In January 2024, AMSilk announced a partnership with 21st.BIO to accelerate production using a new protein production strain created from highly specialized precision fermented microorganisms, ensuring that AMSilk can meet demand as it increases production from the laboratory to industrial scale.
The new strain ensures extracellular expression of silk proteins, enabling manufacturing at unprecedented productivity levels due to higher yield and greater efficiency, thereby reducing production costs.
In March 2024, AMSilk also announced an update on its strategic R&D collaboration with BRAIN Biotech, which allows the structural proteins underlying AMSilk's protein fibers to be modified at the amino acid level enabling products to be easily tailored to specific market requirements.
This pps is a joke. Should be way higher knowing what we know now. Might take some time for folks to catch up on the news. Bottom line is either Kings/Spydasilk, or Polartec, or medical supplier, or somebody is going to be getting silk to weave or knit or put into final products by the end of the year. Those racks are full of cocoons and the process and facility can be replicated over and over.
“
Or something to that effect “
You’re not pulling anybody
beats me...but they have Dr Kumar who is ramrodding the trials and he sees fit to do it this way...and the results of how hes making it happen, so far, are freakin great...so i really dont care what dfs thinks about it...i like the results...and im willing to let Dr Kumar do his thing...
As if we need more reminders that you don't know what you're talking about.
Another phenomenal post, Beacham! GO KBLB!
Experts are clear on why. Maybe when you and your unclear cronies put in the time in the field, you'll gain clarity. I'll believe it when I see it, though. LMAO
Hey, Mojo, another "drifter!" That pool needs to be drained!
The walls at Prodigy tended towards white as well. I don’t think these eggs are being reared at Prodigy. Would be interesting to know where they have chosen to raise BAM-1.
Not sure that it matters. The facility seems to be well-equipped for its job. We may find out more in the future.
You seem to be forgetting ‘genetic drift.’ KBLB linked eye-color and the genetic sequences for producing GMO silk together. They then selected silkworms for breeding that had the correct eye color. Unfortunately, the genetic sequences for GMO silk got lost in that selection/replication process.
It happened before. Don’t pretend genetic replication across generations is assured by biology. Simply not true, especially when messing around with the genome of an organism using gene editing tools.
You are correct sir imo. They haven’t launched the hybrid yet. Just the parent strains of the hybrid. All is good though. They are on the right track and showing great progress. That’s all I care about. I’m a buyer at anything under a dime. These will prove to be bargain basement prices in the long run.
Thanks for proving me right. I said the actual hybrid not the parent strains. Why would Kim just oversee the parent line trials if both the parent lines and the hybrids themselves were being tested at the same time? Today’s PR confirmed they weren’t yet actually raising BAM1 hybrid worms in their trials.
Launch, yet another word KT uses rather loosely. You can’t trial the BAM1 hybrids until you have BAM1 hybrid eggs but you can claim you’re launching their trial since you’re raising their parents. You need to learn how to speak KTese.
Here's a fact. You said it hasn't been said we have launched the Bam-1 trials. Read and weep...... "The Company successfully launched the production trials of BAM-1, its newest and most robust recombinant spider silk production silkworm hybrid, on time and in line with its production roadmap. The Company’s CEO remains in Asia to directly oversee the production trial of the BAM-1 parental strains and monitor their performance."
My last post to you. Relax!
So you’re saying I could very well and most likely will be right then. Nothing wrong at all with my reading comprehension.
“you seem very displeased with today's news”
I don’t know where I said that. It shows they are making some progress. The problem is with those that are reading more into the news than what there was. The news was about getting to the end of the parent line trials. You and your buddies are trying to make it sound like their ‘immunity worms’ were a success, which these trials have nothing to do with.
What happened to the actual BAM1 hybrid trial? Doesn’t appear to have started yet. I guess D4S was right about that even though you and your buddies have been telling him he was wrong on his timeline.
There were 2 parent lines. Either they only showed one set of cocoons or they produced identical cocoons. Why would they mess with crossing them if the parent lines can produce large excellent looking cocoons? Adds a lot of complication and cost to the whole process.
Have you and your buddies ever won a real argument with facts or do you just like to make false derogatory comments about other posters that have a different opinion than you have?
AI said……
“The first shipment of spider silk from Vietnam came from Prodigy Textiles, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Kraig Biocraft Laboratories. Kraig Biocraft Laboratories is a biotechnology company focused on the development and commercialization of spider silk, based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The spider silk was produced by recombinant spider silk fibres, threads, and textiles. This shipment was a response to the high demand for spider silk from various industries, including sports apparel, industrial textiles, first responder supplies, and medical products.”
Watching for…First Spider Silk products announced!
With full governmental support, it’s looking like all
Vietnam is going to be the Spider Silk production capital.
FWIW, if you rewatch the videos of prodigy, you’ll see no floors like the one in today’s PR.
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Moderators MU_Redskin1 gimmegimmeminemine TRUISM EOT WebSlinger |
Email: corporate@KraigLabs.com
KRAIG LABS WEBSITE FOR INVESTORS
Quarterly and Annual Reporting to the SEC is available on the Company's Website and EDGAR.
* Financial Statements * SEC Filings *
Outstanding Shares as of January 12, 2023
For issues or questions relating to share certificates or the transfer of securities please contact the company's transfer agent:
Olde Monmouth Stock Transfer Co., Inc.
200 Memorial Pkwy.
Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey 07716
Phone: (732) 872-2727
(since August 14, 2013)
Kraig Biocraft Laboratories, Inc. (KBLB) is the first company with a commercially feasible spidersilk to be mass produced.
Kraig Labs is a biotechnology company focused on the development of commercially significant high performance polymers and technical fibers. Kraig Lab's focus has been on the production of a transgenic silkworm incorporating specific gene sequences from the golden orb weaving spider. These specific gene sequences inserted are to enable the silkworm to spin a new recombinant fiber which incorporates spider silk proteins. With the scientific breakthrough announced on September 29, 2010, Kraig Labs is now working to commercialize the transgenic silkworms to compete in the garment industry silk market. The value for the chinese raw silk market alone is 3-5 billion per annum. With the creation of 20 seperate transgenic silkworms, all with unique properties, Kraig Labs is now working at an accelerated pace to build upon their first generation transgenic organisms to develop their second generation of transgenic silkworm incorporating spider silk proteins. The scientists nearly doubled the strength of the silkworm with these specific spider gene insertions. Their second generation of transgenics are expected to be complete in 2011. These second generation organisms are to be compared with the strength, flexibility and resiliency of the native spider in which the gene sequences are derived from. These fibers which will match the strength of spider silk are expected to compete in the technical textiles market valued in excess of 120 billion per annum. The 3rd generation organisms are currently in the planning phase. These organisms are expected to spin fibers exceeding the strength of native spiders and may incorporate gene sequences that release an antibiotic, or to help reduce scarring with use in bandages.
Kraig Biocraft Laboratories has a sponsored research and development program with the University of Notre Dame, and the University of Wyoming. The genetic work is occurring at the University of Notre Dame, headed by Dr Malcolm Fraser, Phd. The gene sequences are derived from Dr. Randy Lewis's(University of Wyoming) patented gene sequences of the golden orb weaving spider. Kraig labs is paying for all expenses incurred for this research and development program, and thus Kraig Labs has exclusive global commercialization rights with the technologies developed, including methods, organisms, and fibers produced.
MANAGEMENT
Kim Thompson, Founder and CEO
As the CEO of the company, Mr. Thompson is the only member of the scientific advisory board who is also
a part of the corporation's management. His formal education lies in the fields of economics and law.
He received his B.A. in Applied Economics from James Madison College at Michigan State University.
He received his Juris Doctorate from the University of Michigan Law School in 1994.
Mr. Thompson founded Kraig Biocraft Laboratories in his pursuit of the development of new biotechnologies
with industrial applications. As chairman of the scientific advisory board, he brings a unique perspective,and
acts as the primary liaison between the advisory board and the corporation.
Mr. Thompson brings a wealth of experience in business management and consultation to Kraig. Following
the completion of his undergraduate degree, Mr. Thompson joined California Craftsman, Inc. as a
Vice-President with primary responsibility for both marketing and human resources.
Kim Thompson was the director of business development at Franchise Venture Partners, LLC. He subsequently
joined the firm of Shearson, Lehman, Hutton where he specialized in equity trading and research of small cap
companies. Mr. Thompson received the highest series seven score for all Shearson brokers in his class nationwide.
His experience in those small cap equity markets has proven to be invaluable both in his legal and business successes.
Prior to becoming a public company CEO, Mr. Thompson was the founder and senior litigation partner in a California
commercial law firm where he worked as corporate and litigation counsel to privately held and public companies.
His many accomplishments in corporate law include winning and collecting in full what his firm believes to have been
the largest award of lost profits in a California commercial arbitration up to that time. An important part of his work was
winning victories on behalf of corporate clients in disputes over intellectual property and distribution rights. He has
represented business clients ranging from small start ups and micro caps to Fortune 100 companies.
With a background in business leadership and in advising public and private corporations, Kim Thompson continues
to bring a unique perspective to the successful management of business. His extensive business and legal background
enables him to create practical solutions to business problems and seize opportunities for growth.
Mr. Thompson is a member of the Triple Nine Society for persons with documented genius level IQs (having tested above
the 99.9th percentile). He is also active in the realm of science and invention where he has to his credit a number of
provisional patent applications including innovations in the areas of biotechnology, organic polymers, genetic engineering
and magnetic field manipulation, among others.
Mr. Rice has over 13 years’ experience growing development stage businesses with a focus on technology development, commercialization, and go to market strategies. Mr. Rice holds a B.S. in Chemical engineering from Michigan Technological University.
Prior to joining Kraig Biocraft Laboratories Mr. Rice was the Director of Advanced Technologies for Ultra Electronics, AMI. In this role, Mr. Rice was responsible for the identification, capture, and execution of new technology programs. During his tenure with AMI, Rice secured more than twenty five million dollars in funded development programs from the US Department of Defense which his team successfully leveraged into commercially viable spinoff products. Mr. Rice was also responsible for technical sales, marketing, and promotion of AMI’s products and capabilities. Rice joined AMI as the third full time employee and helped to lead the organization through its rapid growth and ultimate acquisition by Ultra Electronics in 2011.
Earlier in his career Mr. Rice developed unique advanced manufacturing techniques, established and trained a production staff, led engineering development, authored numerous technical papers, and is a recognized subject matter expert. Mr. Rice holds 5 issued patents and numerous provisional patents.
Mr. Rice brings a history of transforming revolutionary ideas into viable commercial products.
Mr. Rice is currently completing his Masters of Business Administration through the Executive Program at the Eli Broad College of Business: Michigan State University.
Despite the huge potential of genetically modified animals outside of laboratory research, commercialisation of these animals has been extremely limited. Numerous factors, including negative consumer perception, regulatory hurdles, and limitations inherent to classical GM technologies, have kept the majority of GM animal applications within the realm of academic research. However genome editing using zinc finger nucleases could help develop new markets for the future commercialisation of GM animals.
Genetic modification is commonplace throughout the life sciences sector, from fundamental research to pharmaceutical testing. GM cellular and animal models are valuable tools for the study of many chronic diseases, the testing of pharmaceutical compounds and the development of new therapeutic strategies. Genetic modification also offers great benefits in vaccine and biopharmaceutical manufacturing, which rely heavily on the use of GM organisms for biomolecule design and production. Modifying the genome of an organism or cell line allows the incorporation of target biomolecules in specific biological contexts, as well as the transfer of a gene product from a low-producing organism to one that can produce on a commercial scale. These applications have been widely accepted for many years, with countless GM organisms approved for medical manufacturing applications by drug regulators in all major countries. Despite this widespread success within the research and pharmaceutical sectors, the use of GM organisms outside of these markets has been limited.
Despite the lack of broad acceptance for most commercial applications of GM animal products, this technology has been able to gain traction in a few market sectors. The most obvious application has been the commercialisation of transgenic animals for the production of biomolecules for therapeutic use. Cattle, sheep and goats have been used for large-scale production of antibodies, steroids and hormones - most notably insulin - for many years. In 2009, GTC Biotherapeutics received US FDA approval for bioproduction of a recombinant human antithrombin. This product - ATryn - is extracted from the milk of transgenic goats, and is the first approved biopharmaceutical to be produced using genetically engineered animals. Although this is a significant breakthrough for the commercialisation of GM animals, it is still within the pharmaceutical industry, and is a natural progression of existing cell-based technologies. Of potentially greater commercial interest is the extension of genetic engineering outside of this sector, into areas such as food production, textiles and even companion animals.
GM crops have been available in many countries since the early 1990s, and numerous cash crops - including sugar beet, soybean, corn and tomatoes - have been modified to improve resistance to disease, increase the rate of growth or enhance nutritional value. However, cultivation of these transgenic crops is generally tightly regulated, particularly within the European Union, and this, together with negative public opinion, has limited the more widespread development of GM technologies.
Similar to GM crops, many of the animals currently under development are intended to confer disease resistance, an application particularly suited to the use of zinc finger nuclease (ZFN) technology. Many diseases can be treated by the targeted deletion or modification of a host gene. With ZFNs, these targets can be modified with no footprint of genetic engineering. Due to the high costs of raising livestock, another area of focus in developing commercial GM animals has been increasing the rate of growth or size of animals. Among the first GM animals likely to be launched is a fast growing salmon from AquaBounty. The AquAdvantage Salmon is designed to reach market size in half the time of a wild type salmon, reducing costs for fish farmers and limiting the environmental impact of salmon farming by avoiding the need for ocean pens.
Although genetic engineering of animals for food is primarily driven by economic pressures, GM technologies have also been used in the companion animals market. In this sector, genetic modification can be used for practical purposes - such as the creation of hypoallergenic animals or the correction of heritable congenital defects which have arisen though inbreeding - or for purely cosmetic purposes, such as GloFish. The first example of a GM pet, GloFish are fluorescent zebrafish (Danio rerio) that have had genes encoding naturally fluorescent proteins (GFP, YFP, RFP) inserted into their genome. Developed by a group at the National University of Singapore, GloFish were originally created to develop live detection systems for water pollution. They were introduced as pets in the United States in 2003 following over two years of extensive environmental research and consultation. In Europe however, the sale and possession of GloFish is prohibited by rigorous legislation concerning the use of GM technologies.
By allowing precisely targeted insertion of spider genes and concomitant removal of endogenous silkworm silk genes at the same locus, ZFN technology offers the potential for development of transgenic silkworms which will produce native spider silk at commercially viable levels
Perhaps even more interesting from a commercial perspective is the use of GM animals in the manufacture of textiles. Silkworms - actually the larval form of the silkmoth Bombyx mori - have been used for the production of silk for thousands of years, with natural silk still produced by the cultivation of silkworms today. Silkworm cocoons are unwound to create linear silk threads, then re-spun into textiles in much the same way as cotton. Although the applications of silkworm silk are numerous, due to their unique physical and chemical properties, there is also widespread interest in the silks of several other insects.
Spider silk, in particular, offers numerous possibilities within the technical textiles industry, due to its incredible tensile strength and elasticity; characteristics which have not yet been replicated in synthetic materials. Like all insect silks, spider silk fibres consist of repetitive units of protein crystals separated by less structured protein chains. The exact properties and composition of each spider silk vary with its intended function. Major Ampullate or dragline silk, for example, is relatively hydrophobic with very high tensile strength and toughness, as it is used to form the outer rim and spokes of a web. In contrast, hydrophilic capture spiral silks, which form the inner structures of the web, are sticky and highly elastic to effectively entrap prey. This high degree of variability offers enormous potential for the textiles industry, raising the possibility of tailoring the properties of silk to create advanced technical fabrics, for applications such as bulletproof vests, parachute canopies and automobile airbags; biomedical applications, including sutures and tendon and ligament repair; new fabrics, for sportswear and clothing; and even microelectronics.
Although the use of spider silks for microsutures has recently been reported, more widespread application of spider silk technologies is currently limited by the difficulty in producing silks on a commercially viable scale. This is due to the difficulties of rearing spiders in large numbers, due to their highly territorial and cannibalistic nature. As a result, the harvesting of spider silk fibres is extremely time consuming and labour intensive, with production of the only known spider silk garment - an 11 foot by 4 foot shawl made from golden orb spider silk - taking 150 people over five years to produce and costing in excess of £300,000!
.
To overcome these limitations, and allow future development of spider silk technologies, an alternative strategy for spider silk production is required. This makes spider silk production an obvious candidate for genetic modification, inserting spider silk genes into the genome
of other silk-making insects for bioproduction. For example, random insertion of orb spider silk genes into silkworms has allowed production of hybrid spider/silkworm silk using traditional silkworm farming strategies. The resulting hybrid silk contains approximately 10% spider silk
and has greater strength and durability than native silkworm silk, raising the possibility of using transgenic silkworms to produce pure spider silks.
Though straightforward in principle, the exchange of native silkworm genes for spider silk genes, alongside more widespread exploitation of genetic engineering, has been limited by the inherent restrictions of conventional GM technologies.
The generalised process of modifying an organism requires several capabilities, including:
While many different techniques exist for accomplishing each of these steps, most GM technologies offer a compromise between the efficiency of the technique and the ability to accurately and precisely target the locus of interest. Viral genomic delivery technologies effectively deliver nucleic acids to cells and organisms, but fall short on ability to target specific regions of the genome, generally only allowing random insertion of genetic material. In comparison, transposase technologies allow a greater degree of targeting, but leave unwanted traces of exogenous DNA in their wake. Other methods involve the introduction of naked DNA into the cell, which results in insertion into the genome at very low frequencies, usually at random, limiting this approach to organisms that can be economically cultivated at high densities and screened in large numbers. Simply put, most techniques for genetic manipulation are random, inefficient and leave a 'footprint' of foreign DNA. While this is usually tolerated in basic research, it is not acceptable for most commercial applications, and has been a major hurdle for GM animal technologies to date.
The advent of zinc finger nuclease (ZFN) technology represents a significant breakthrough for commercialisation of GM animal products, offering precisely targeted, efficient genome editing for the first time. Commercially available through Sigma Life Science under the CompoZr brand, this technique can be used to create permanent and heritable changes to an organism of interest.
This high degree of variability offers enormous potential for the textiles industry, raising the possibility of tailoring the properties of silk to create advanced technical fabrics
ZFNs are a class of engineered DNA binding proteins that facilitate targeted editing of the genome by creating double-strand breaks at user-specified locations. These breaks stimulate the cell's natural DNA repair mechanisms - homologous recombination (HR) and non-homologous end joining (NHEJ) - which can be exploited to achieve rapid and permanent site-specific modification of the desired genes. While HR can be used to insert foreign DNA sequences, NHEJ allows the cell's natural processes to create precisely targeted mimics of natural mutations which leave no traces of foreign DNA. Unlike previous techniques, ZFNs offer excellent sequence specificity, binding 24 to 36 base pair target sequences to virtually eliminate off target effects, and are able to achieve modification rates exceeding 20 %, well above rates for most other technologies.
The technique is already being used to create transgenic silkworms for spider silk production. By allowing precisely targeted insertion of spider genes and concomitant removal of endogenous silkworm silk genes at the same locus, ZFN technology offers the potential for development of transgenic silkworms which will produce native spider silk at commercially viable levels.
GM technologies have revolutionised the research world and have great potential in a variety of commercial applications, but have been limited by the inherent restrictions associated with historical GM technologies. The main drawback of these technologies is their inability to accurately and efficiently target genes of interest, instead relying on random insertion of genetic material into host genomes. These limitations result in the need for extensive and costly screening to identify animals with correct transgene expression (without compromising the viability of the animal), and also result in the co-expression of both the transgene and native homologues already present.
The advent of ZFN technology signifies the beginning of an exciting new chapter in the world of genetic modification, allowing precise, targeted and efficient genome editing for the first time. Production of native spider silk using transgenic silkworms is just one example of the potential commercial applications of this innovative technology, taking us one step closer to the reality of industrial scale biomanufacturing and paving the way for an entirely new spectrum of environmentally friendly materials.
Authors:
Joseph Bedell and Brian Buntaine
Commercial Animal Technologies Group, Sigma Advanced Genetic Engineering (SAGE) Labs, Sigma Life Science
HEADLINES FOR KRAIG BIOCRAFT LABORATORIES / (KBLB):
PHOTOS FROM VIETNAM POSTED JULY 6, 2018
ANN ARBOR, Mich., – January 7, 2019 –Kraig Biocraft Laboratories, Inc. (OTCQB: KBLB) (“Company”), the leading developer of spider silk based fibers, announces today that it has successfully delivered the first two shipments of its highly specialized silkworms, which produce a silk with the physical characteristics of spider silk, to Vietnam.
Today’s announcement is the culmination of more than 5 years of work, and challenging negotiation, with the government of Vietnam. The silkworms from these first two shipments have already hatched and are now enjoying a fresh mulberry diet, so, for the first time in history, the global demand for spider silk materials has a viable, cost effective, and scalable solution.
“The dream of commercializing our powerful technology is now materializing. This marks a dramatic leap forward in Kraig Labs’ business plan for commercial production and mass marketing of cost effective recombinant spider silk, and becomes the foundation for an entirely new industry,” said, COO, Jon Rice. “To our long-term shareholders, who have taken this journey with us, as well as our team in the US and Vietnam, who have worked tirelessly to make this dream a reality, I cannot thank you enough. As we start the New Year, full of new opportunity, we truly have something incredible to celebrate.”
The Company has been working with leading sericulture experts, biotechnology institutions, and governmental agencies, in Vietnam, to further boost the silk industry with our revolutionary technology. Kraig Labs is currently finalizing renovation plans for a ~46,000 square foot production factory in Quang Nam Province, Vietnam.
“Our plan has always been to bring our technology to the silk producing regions of the world for rapid scale-up,” said, CEO and Founder, Kim Thompson. “Today we see the fruits of that effort. With its massive silk infrastructure and production capacity, Vietnam is an ideal location to launch our technology scale-up. Congratulations to our team and shareholders, as we prepare for the realization of large scale production.”
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