World's First CRISPR-Edited Spiders Shoot Fluoro Red Silk From Their Butt

World's First CRISPR-Edited Spiders Shoot Fluoro Red Silk From Their Butt

Beginning a chain of events that will presumably lead to the origin of our universe's Spider-Man, researchers in Germany have created the world's first spiders to be genetically modified using CRISPR technology. These spiders are unlikely to generate any superheroes (for now). They are not radioactive, and although their DNA has been altered, nothing has changed about their venom. They are still ordinary house spiders – mostly.As a result of…

Scientists genetically modified a spider for the first time for the purpose of producing fluorescent red silk. But behind this experiment, the main aim was to study the molecular tool CRISPR-Cas9. Scientists that genetically modify a spider? Yes, it's real. Is it true?

The development of CRISPR-Cas9 as a useful technique for functional genetic research in the spider mite Tetranychus urticae and other difficult to transform arthropods.