ST. LOUIS, Missouri, July 23 -- Washington University in St. Louis posted the following news:

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Silkworm cultivation predated the Silk Road in southern Central Asia

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The silkworm moth, whose caterpillars have been used in silk production since antiquity, may have been brought to southern Central Asia 4,000 years ago -nearly 2,000 years earlier than previously assumed -according to new research from Washington University in St. Louis.