Twisted Lines: Artificial muscle and advanced instruments can be formed from nylon threads and fabric

Abstract

At the mention of nylon, you may think of shirts, stockings, fishing line, and sutures. A recent discovery, first reported in February 2014 in Science, is that the strong, tough, and inexpensive threads that make up fabrics and filaments can actively contract and expand?with much greater force than muscle [1]. This newly discovered musclelike action creates opportunities in medical devices?among other areas?that are just beginning to be explored.