<ul data-eligibleForWebStory="true"><li>Velvet worm slime contains an ingredient that could revolutionize the design of high-performance polymers.</li><li>Researchers in Canada and Singapore have been investigating velvet worm slime for new adhesives and recyclable plastics due to its ability to form strong fibres reversibly.</li><li>The slime quickly transforms from a sticky gel into stiff fibres as strong as nylon, produced from specialized papillae on the worm's head.</li><li>The proteins in the slime have a hitherto unknown feature that drives reversible fibre formation.</li><li>A specific high-molecular-weight protein, similar in structure to a Toll-like receptor, was identified in the slime.</li><li>This protein plays a structural role, acting as a 'glue protein' to bring together other slime proteins to form fibres.</li><li>The protein's role in reversible fibre formation is based on receptor-ligand interactions between slime proteins.</li><li>This discovery could inspire the creation of high-performance, recyclable polymers.</li><li>The study was detailed in PNAS and mainly focused on computational modelling and protein structure prediction.</li></ul>

Worm slime could inspire recyclable polymer design

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