Micro and nano-scale compartments guide the structural transition of silk protein monomers into silk fibers

Abstract

By following morphological changes in supramolecular assemblies of silkworm silk, the authors find that while the initial steps of secretion and storage inside the silk gland follow the micelle theory of silk assembly, a phase rearrangement occurs inside microscale spherical structures that gives rise to the formation of nanoscale spherical assemblies.