Stegodyphus lineatus
The act of reproduction, regarding the female, leads to an increase of digestive enzymes. This allows her to eat more prey and to stock more nutrients. The digestive enzymes then start to digest the inside of the organism itself, except for the heart, guts, and mostly the ovaries. Once the offspring are born, and until the mother dies, the mother regurgitates for two weeks the fluids stocked inside as highly nutritive food for the progeny. Ninety-five per cent of the mother's mass is digested by the offspring. They will grow to three times their original size between their birth and dispersion. During the period when female spiders are caring for their hatched offspring, the mothers do not eat, and their offspring only eat the food that the mother regurgitates along with the mother's body at the end of this time.
Blanching (cooking)
Blanching is a process used in the home kitchen as well as used as a pre-treatment in the food industry. In both cases, its main purpose is to inactivate enzymes that cause browning as well as textural changes and off-flavors. Enzymes that cause deterioration in fruits and vegetables include lipoxygenase, polyphenoloxidase, polygalacturonase, and chlorophyllase. Catalase and peroxidase are commonly used to determine blanching success, since they are the most thermal-resistant enzymes of concern. These enzymes are responsible for the loss of flavor, color, texture and nutritional qualities during product storage.