Introduction
Synthetic fibers are dominated in the textile industry, which are made of petroleum based materials, that’s way; its disposable is a big problem. For years, scientists have been looking for alternatives to synthetic fibers like nylon and lycra, or spandex, Kevlar which are made from oil – a non-renewable resource. Synthetic fibers may be replaced by natural ones, like spider silk, wool, silk etc. But these natural fibers provide sustainable and biocompatible alternatives but they’re not as strong, and artificial variations lack stability and solubility. Now a new fiber ‘hagfish slime fiber’ (protein based polymer) is invented, which is like spider silk, had exhibit outstanding material properties like strong and flexible. Hagfish slime has the potential to provide a natural and renewable alternative. I will explore in this article about the fascinating world of hagfish slime fibers, from their unique structure, composition, properties, manufacturing to their potential applications in textile field.
What Are Hagfish?
The hagfish are snake-like creatures that live on the bottom of the ocean. It is jawless, spineless a primitive creature that dates back as far as 500 million years. Besides, Hagfish are elongated, eel-shaped, bottom dwelling marine organisms. The largest species of hagfish can reach about 4ft (1.2m), though most are around 1ft (30cm) long. Hagfish are known for their ability to produce large volume of slime when they are provoked or stressed as a defensive mechanism. A single hagfish has hundreds of kilometres of slime thread inside it.
What Are Hagfish Slime Fibers?
Hagfish slime is a protein-based, jelly-like substance released by hagfish as defense against potential predators. Hagfish slime is made up of two main components: mucins and long protein-based fibers. While the mucins create the gel-like texture, the fibers are strong, stretchy threads that provide structure to the slime. These fibers are very thin, almost like spider silk, but they can extend to remarkable lengths when they come in contact with water. Together, they form a lightweight yet durable material that spreads rapidly in the ocean. Scientists believe that hagfish slime or similar proteins could be turned into tights or breathable athletic wear, or even bulletproof vests.
Structure and Composition of Hagfish Slime Threads
The slime threads have an α-keratin like intermediate filament (IF) structure and thread bundles are aligned 1–3 μm in diameter and are several centimeters long. The formation of these bundle of fibers is unique as shown in Figure 2 and consists of following steps: Individual α-helices form coiled-coil dimers (A) that self-assemble into subfilaments, that in turn form complete IF (B) of 10 nm in diameter that align to form one continuous macroscopic fiber (C). This process occurs entirely within a single gland thread cell (GTC) and does not stop until the entire cell is completely filled with this newly formed fiber. Upon ejection out of the glands, individual GTC lose the thin membrane that coated them (D & E).
Properties of Hagfish Slime Fibers
The hagfish threads possess intriguing properties such as-
- Hagfish slime fibers are remain soft and stretchy even after elongating at 33% longer than their original length.
- Despite their small size, they are surprisingly durable.
- It possesses high breaking strain of 220%.
- Once this transition begins, the thread can be lengthened farther, to more than triple its original length.
- According to Fudge’s measurements, it breaks at a stress of approximately 700 megaPascals.
- The tensile properties of the hagfish threads, a low initial stiffness of 6.4 MPa (0.06 g/den) but significantly high strength (180 MPa) (1.6 g/den) and low elongation of 2.2 %.
- Being protein-based, the fibers naturally break down over time.
Slime threads and constituents intermediate filaments possess a number of attractive properties that make them promising protein fibers along with spider silk. The threads that are stretched in water and dried have excellent material properties. These threads resemble dragline spider silk in the super molecular structure aspects. Hence, it could be said that Hagfish slime threads will be a candidate of high performance eco-friendly clothing and will be fashion for future.
These properties have drawn attention from material scientists who are looking for sustainable alternatives to plastics and synthetic fibers.
Manufacturing Process of Hagfish Slime Fibers
Hagfish slime is first collected and then dissolve purified slime thread proteins in an acidic solution and allowed the proteins to coagulate into a film on the surface of an electrolyte solution. After that fibers pulled from these films. Fiber mechanics depends on casting conditions and postspinning processing. If protein concentration is below five percent, the films become too weak to form usable fibers. When the fibers undergo post-drawing, they develop much better strength and flexibility, showing material qualities similar to regenerated silk fibers.
A wet spinning technique is used to spin Hagfish fibers and weaving is done on the fly shuttle pit looms.
Uses of Hagfish Slime Fibers
The unique properties of hagfish slime fibers have captured the interest of scientists and engineers across multiple fields. The strong, flexible fabrics made from hagfish slime, it is environmentally-friendly could be used in, the automobile industry, sports textiles, apparels, safety helmets, bulletproof vests and may more. The strong, elastic, and biocompatible nature of hagfish thread proteins makes them promising candidates for medical uses, such as in advanced bandages and tissue engineering.
The U.S. Navy is presently working with hagfish slime for creating a substance to protect divers from underwater attacks, fight fires, and even stop missiles. An antibacterial bandage fabricated from the Hagfish mucus. It was observed that the bandage would be able to stop maceration-permanent damage to nearby tissues due to extreme moisture.
As natural and renewable materials, hagfish slime fibers could inspire new types of eco-friendly fabrics and composites.
Challenges and Future Prospects of Hagfish Slime Fibers
Despite promising applications, significant challenges remain. Hagfish do not reproduce in captivity, making them difficult to farm for slime production. Scientists like Dr. Douglas Fudge at Chapman University are exploring methods to produce slime proteins in laboratory settings using bioengineering approaches. The complex mechanism of thread formation and deployment also presents engineering hurdles for perfect synthetic replication.
Lot of researchers working on the analysis, production of Hagfish slime and it is not far that the fibers will available in useful form. When stretched in water and dried, it resembles silk and soon will release synthetic fibers like nylon and polyester in many applications. Researchers indicate that Hag fish slime threads will be a candidate of high performance eco-friendly clothing and will be fashion for future and also might be used for stockings or breathable athletic wear or even bullet-proof vests or ballistic protection.
Conclusion
Hagfish slime fibers represent a remarkable example of how nature can inspire advanced materials. Their strength, stretchability, and biodegradability make them a promising alternative to plastics and synthetic fibers. Though still in development, these fibers may one day revolutionize industries ranging from fashion to medical textiles.
References
[1] Karthik, T., Rathinamoorthy, R. (2019). Sustainable Biopolymers in Textiles: An Overview. In: Martínez, L., Kharissova, O., Kharisov, B. (eds) Handbook of Ecomaterials. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-68255-6_53
[2] Sushila, Saroj S. Jeet Singh and Sarita , Devi. “Hagfish slime: The future clothing.” Journal of entomology and zoology studies 8 (2020): 372-375.
[3] Rothschild, A. (2013, April 2). Hagfish slime: The clothing of the future? BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-21954779
[4] Harriet Brewerton, H. (2017, September 17). Hagfish slime turned into ultra-stiff fibre. Chemistry World. Retrieved October 5, 2025, from https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/hagfish-slime-turned-into-ultra-stiff-fibre/3007995.article
Founder & Editor of Textile Learner. He is a Textile Consultant, Blogger & Entrepreneur. Mr. Kiron is working as a textile consultant in several local and international companies. He is also a contributor of Wikipedia.
