科学家发现，蜘蛛网是收集环境DNA的高效基质，能够捕获附近动植物及真菌的遗传物质，可用于生物多样性监测 1。澳大利亚珀斯科廷大学的分子生态学家Joshua Newton将蜘蛛网与植被拭子、水、土壤及带过滤器的风扇等采样方式进行了对比 1。研究结果显示，蜘蛛网在识别脊椎动物方面表现最佳 1。为获取有意义的数据，该研究需破坏约40个蜘蛛网 1。
为以更廉价高效的方式复制这一DNA捕获能力，新西兰怀卡托大学的基因组学家Angela McGaughran团队正开发人造蜘蛛网 1。在实验中，McGaughran团队使用了从万圣节商店购买的人造蜘蛛网进行测试 1。结果表明，这些人造蜘蛛网检测到了附近牛、羊及外来鸟类的环境DNA，且对真菌孢子的检测效果优于真实蜘蛛网 1。
Scientists have discovered that spider webs serve as highly efficient matrices for collecting environmental DNA (eDNA), capturing the genetic material of nearby plants, animals, and fungi for biodiversity monitoring 1. Joshua Newton, a molecular ecologist at Curtin University in Perth, Australia, compared spider webs with other sampling methods, including vegetation swabs, water, soil, and fans equipped with filters 1. His research revealed that spider webs performed best in identifying vertebrates, although obtaining meaningful data required the destruction of approximately 40 spider webs 1.
Building on this natural capability, Angela McGaughran, a genomicist at the University of Waikato in New Zealand, is leading a team to develop artificial spider webs to replicate this DNA-capturing ability more cheaply and efficiently 1. Using artificial spider webs purchased from a Halloween store, McGaughran's team detected eDNA from nearby cattle, sheep, and exotic birds 1. Furthermore, these synthetic webs proved to be more effective than real spider webs at detecting fungal spores 1.
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