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Technology Transfer from the University of Oxford

New Oxford University Company in a Spin

A new spin-out from Oxford University, Spinox, is aiming to devise novel ways to copy spiders' ability to spin silks. The new silks may be used for sutures or woven material for surgical implants, protective clothing and in sports equipment.

Spinox has been set up to fully develop a spinning process to create high performance fibres from natural or artificial proteins based on the principles used by spiders and insects to create natural silk fibres. This approach - biomimetic (mimicking biology) spinning - is based on patents and expertise from leading spider and silk experts Professor Fritz Vollrath and Dr David Knight at Oxford's Department of Zoology, who together published an authoritative overview of natural silk spinning in the leading science journal Nature last year.

High performance silk fibres are amazingly tough and may eventually out-compete oil-based polymer fibres, and illustrate how future materials can be based on sustainable, non-polluting processes inspired by nature. Natural spinning processes are highly energy efficient and do not require high temperatures, strongly acidic solutions or toxic organic solvents. They show excellent properties over a wide range of temperatures and can be made magnetic or conducting. A wide range of feedstocks might be used for biomimetic spinning including artificially synthesised or genetically engineered protein analogues and natural 'silk-like' proteins obtained from wheat or rice grains. The company will seek to exploit its understanding of the underlying processing of molecular self-assembly to address other materials markets.

Dr Knight said: "Spinox is an excellent example of how we can use nature's ingenuity to help us develop new processes and materials with quite exceptional properties in an eco-friendly way."

Tom Hockaday, a director of Isis Innovation Ltd, which supported the formation of Spinox, said: "This is fascinating technology with enormous commercial potential. We are pleased to have been involved in launching the business."

For further information, please contact the Press Office on 01865 280528.

Notes to Editors

  • The company is being provided with seed corn funding by Technostart - a leading German hi-tech venture capital fund and by the Oxford University Challenge Seed Fund. The approach will develop microchannel-based spinning devices which mimic the unique way in which spiders and silkworm spin silk. Central Research Laboratories Limited (CRL), part of the Intellectual Property generating company Scipher PLC, will be providing microfabrication and microchemistry expertise and development facilities, and will also have equity in the company.
  • Barlow Lyde & Gilbert, who specialise in legal services for hi-tech companies, are acting as the Company Solicitors, while Iain Rae of Beaumont Limited supported the establishment of the new company for Isis Innovation.
  • Isis Innovation Ltd, Oxford University's wholly-owned technology transfer company established in 1988, is a world leader in university technology transfer. Isis currently files a patent a week and spins out a company every two months based on academic research generated within and owned by the University. The combined value of Oxford's companies has reached £2 billion, using quoted market capitalisations and investor valuations for unquoted companies. The creation of these new spin-out companies benefits local economic development and has created many new jobs in the region.