silk gland

noun

1. any of several glands, as in various insects and spiders, that secrete a viscid protein substance which hardens into silk on contact with air.

Word History and Origins

Origin of silk gland¹

First recorded in 1865–70

Example Sentences

About 20 years ago, other researchers suggested corophioid diversity arose as members of the clade, which includes 21 families, evolved silk glands, long antennae, and grasping legs.

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A crucial part of spinning, the researchers found, requires the spidroins to separate themselves from the watery buffer that swaddles them inside silk glands — a step that hyper-concentrates the proteins.

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In just a few minutes she found what she was seeking: hundreds of silk glands, the organs spiders use to make their webs.

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It turns out that their big domes house more than just silk glands—huge muscles fill the head, anchored to short, sharp mandibles, the team reports in Frontiers in Zoology.

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By 300 million years ago, fossils show, eight-legged creatures with spiderlike mouth parts, primitive silk glands, and stumpy abdomens had emerged.

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