Spider Silk IELTS Reading: Passage Translation & Detailed Answer Key

You’ve probably always thought of spider silk as something fragile, easily swept away with a broom, right? The reading passage “Spider Silk” will completely change that misconception. By exploring the efforts of scientists to replicate the genes of the Golden Orb Weaver spider, you’ll see just how much potential bio-silk holds for the construction and military industries. Packed with specialized vocabulary from biochemistry and materials science, this passage is an excellent opportunity to sharpen your Flow-chart Completion skills and your ability to cross-reference information. Let’s dive into the details of this passage with ECE!

Reading Passage & Questions

Spider silk

A strong, light bio-material made by genes from spiders could transform construction and industry.

A

Scientists have succeeded in copying the silk-producing genes of the Golden Orb Weaver spider and are using them to create a synthetic material which they believe is the model for a new generation of advanced bio-materials. The new material, biosilk, which has been spun for the first time by researchers at DuPont, has an enormous range of potential uses in construction and manufacturing.

B

The attraction of the silk spun by the spider is a combination of great strength and enormous elasticity, which man-made fibres have been unable to replicate. On an equal-weight basis, spider silk is far stronger than steel and it is estimated that if a single strand could be made about 10m in diameter, it would be strong enough to stop a jumbo jet in flight. A third important factor is that it is extremely light. Army scientists are already looking at the possibilities of using it for lightweight, bulletproof vests and parachutes.

C

For some time, biochemists have been trying to synthesise the drag-line silk of the Golden Orb Weaver. The drag-line silk, which forms the radial arms of the web, is stronger than the other parts of the web and some biochemists believe a synthetic version could prove to be as important a material as nylon, which has been around for 50 years, since the discoveries of Wallace Carothers and his team ushered in the age of polymers.

D

To recreate the material, scientists, including Randolph Lewis at the University of Wyoming, first examined the silk-producing gland of the spider. ‘We took out the glands that produce the silk and looked at the coding for the protein material they make, which is spun into a web. We then went looking for clones with the right DNA,’ he says.

E

At DuPont, researchers have used both yeast and bacteria as hosts to grow the raw material, which they have spun into fibres. Robert Dorsch, DuPont’s director of biochemical development, says the globules of protein, comparable with marbles in an egg, are harvested and processed. ‘We break open the bacteria, separate out the globules of protein and use them as the raw starting material. With yeast, the gene system can be designed so that the material excretes the protein outside the yeast for better access,’ he says.

F

‘The bacteria and the yeast produce the same protein, equivalent to that which the spider uses in the draglines of the web. The spider mixes the protein into a water-based solution and then spins it into a solid fibre in one go. Since we are not as clever as the spider and we are not using such sophisticated organisms, we substituted man-made approaches and dissolved the protein in chemical solvents, which are then spun to push the material through small holes to form the solid fibre.’

G

Researchers at DuPont say they envisage many possible uses for a new biosilk material. They say that earthquake-resistant suspension bridges hung from cables of synthetic spider silk fibres may become a reality. Stronger ropes, safer seat belts, shoe soles that do not wear out so quickly and tough new clothing are among the other applications. Biochemists such as Lewis see the potential range of uses of biosilk as almost limitless. ‘It is very strong and retains elasticity: there are no man-made materials that can mimic both these properties. It is also a biological material with all the advantages that have over petrochemicals,’ he says.

H

At DuPont’s laboratories, Dorsch is excited by the prospect of new super-strong materials but he warns they are many years away. ‘We are at an early stage but theoretical predictions are that we will wind up with a very strong, tough material, with an ability to absorb shock, which is stronger and tougher than the man-made materials that are conventionally available to us,’ he says.

I

The spider is not the only creature that has aroused the interest of material scientists. They have also become envious of the natural adhesive secreted by the sea mussel. It produces a protein adhesive to attach itself to rocks. It is tedious and expensive to extract the protein from the mussel, so researchers have already produced a synthetic gene for use in surrogate bacteria.

Questions 1 – 5

Reading Passage has nine paragraphs, A-I. Which paragraph contains the following information?

1. a comparison of the ways two materials are used to replace silk-producing glands

2. predictions regarding the availability of the synthetic silk

3. ongoing research into other synthetic materials

4. the research into the part of the spider that manufactures silk

5. the possible application of the silk in civil engineering

Questions 6 – 10

Complete the flow-chart below. Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.

Synthetic gene grown in 6 ……………….. or 7 ………………..

↓

globules of 8 ………………..

↓

dissolved in 9 ………………..

↓

passed through 10 ………………..

↓

to produce a solid fibre

Questions 11 – 13

Do the following statements agree with the information given in the Reading Passage? Write TRUE, FALSE, or NOT GIVEN.

11. Biosilk has already replaced nylon in parachute manufacture.

12. The spider produces silk of varying strengths.

13. Lewis and Dorsch co-operated in the synthetic production of silk.

Reading Translation

Spider Silk

A strong, light bio-material made from spider genes could transform the construction and industrial sectors.

Paragraph A: Scientists have succeeded in copying the silk-producing genes of the Golden Orb Weaver spider and are using them to create a synthetic material which they believe is the model for a new generation of advanced bio-materials. The new material, biosilk… has a wide range of potential applications in construction and manufacturing.

Paragraph B: The appeal of spider silk lies in the combination of great strength and enormous elasticity, which man-made fibres have been unable to replicate. On an equal-weight basis, spider silk is far stronger than steel, and it is estimated that if a single strand could be made with a diameter of about 10m, it would be strong enough to stop a jumbo jet in flight. A third important factor is that it is extremely light. Army scientists are already looking into the possibility of using it for lightweight bulletproof vests and parachutes.

Paragraph C: For some time, biochemists have been trying to synthesise the drag-line silk of the Golden Orb Weaver. This silk, which forms the radial arms of the web, is stronger than other parts of the web, and some biochemists believe a synthetic version could prove as important as nylon…

Paragraph D: To recreate the material, scientists… first examined the silk-producing gland of the spider. “We took out the glands that produce the silk and looked at the coding for the protein material they make… We then went looking for clones with the right DNA,” he says.

Paragraph E: At DuPont, researchers have used both yeast and bacteria as hosts to grow the raw material… Robert Dorsch… says the globules of protein… are harvested and processed. “We break open the bacteria, separate out the globules of protein and use them as the raw starting material. With yeast, the gene system can be designed so that the material excretes the protein outside the yeast for better access,” he says.

Paragraph F: “The bacteria and the yeast produce the same protein, equivalent to that which the spider uses… Since we are not as clever as the spider and we are not using such sophisticated organisms, we substituted man-made approaches and dissolved the protein in chemical solvents, which are then spun to push the material through small holes to form the solid fibre.”

Paragraph G: Researchers at DuPont say they envisage many possible uses for the new biosilk material. They say that earthquake-resistant suspension bridges hung from cables of synthetic spider silk fibres may become a reality… It is also a biological material with all the advantages that have over petrochemicals.

Paragraph H: At DuPont’s laboratories, Dorsch is excited by the prospect of new super-strong materials but warns that they are many years away…

Paragraph I: The spider is not the only creature that has aroused the interest of material scientists. They have also become envious of the natural adhesive secreted by the sea mussel… Extracting the protein from the mussel is tedious and expensive, so researchers have created a synthetic gene for use in surrogate bacteria.

Key Vocabulary Summary

Answers and Detailed Explanations

Task Type: Matching Information (Questions 1 – 5)

1. E

• Question: a comparison of the ways two materials are used to replace silk-producing glands.

• Explanation: Paragraph E compares the methods of working with two types of hosts: bacteria (breaking them open to extract protein) and yeast (designing genes to excrete protein externally).

2. H

• Question: predictions regarding the availability of the synthetic silk.

• Explanation: Paragraph H clearly states Dorsch’s warning that these new materials “are many years away.”

3. I

• Question: ongoing research into other synthetic materials.

• Explanation: Paragraph I mentions another study regarding the adhesive of the sea mussel.

4. D

• Question: the research into the part of the spider that manufactures silk.

• Explanation: Paragraph D specifies that scientists examined the “silk-producing gland” of the spider.

5. G

• Question: the possible application of the silk in civil engineering.

• Explanation: Paragraph G mentions using silk fibres to make cables for “earthquake-resistant suspension bridges.”

Task Type: Flow-chart Completion (Questions 6 – 10)

6 & 7. yeast / bacteria (Order can be reversed)

• Location: Paragraph E: “…have used both yeast and bacteria as hosts to grow the raw material…”

• Explanation: The chart asks where the synthetic gene is grown. The answer is the two hosts: yeast and bacteria.

8. protein

• Location: Paragraph E: “…separate out the globules of protein…”

• Explanation: The keyword “globules of…” is followed by “protein.”

9. chemical solvents

• Location: Paragraph F: “…and dissolved the protein in chemical solvents…”

• Explanation: The chart asks what it is “dissolved in.” The correct answer is “chemical solvents,” which fits the “NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS” limit.

10. small holes (or holes)

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