Tag: bacteria

Naturally-occurring colour pigments in purple maize have anti-inflammatory properties. Clothes, meanwhile, are rarely manufactured using natural colours. But all that could be about to change thanks to the work of two textile engineers and their New York-based startup. The team is using biotechnology to create colourful yarn without using dye. First, in a fermentation process, special bacteria produce natural...

Internal wounds could be closed by a robot with an integrated 3D-printer. Sometimes, however, a blood transfusion is required. Here, blood type and Rh factor must be identical for donor and patient, although type 0 can generally be used for types A, B and AB. Need is unpredictable, and donated blood can only be stored for 42 days. Now,...

Vaccination patches could be printed locally. Now, a long-term study is offering hope to those who suffer from bacterial urinary infections. Over a 9-year period, a British medical team observed the effects of a spray (containing different types of bacteria) administered under the tongue to 72 women and 17 men. All had suffered previously from UTIs  and took a...

Flexible building design is good for the environment. Traditional cement production is not as it's responsible for 8% of global CO2 emissions. A statistic that an American startup is striving to change. Inspired by marine ecosystems, the female founder experimented with bacteria that produce calcium carbonate. One of the company’s first products are stone tiles, manufactured in a patented process...

There are ‘sweet solutions’ for rare earths. Bacteria, meanwhile, can be used to break down metals. Now, a research team at Northwestern University is investigating how the tiny organisms can help rationalise chemical processes in an environmentally-friendly way. The team reprogrammed an anaerobic bacteria so that it could convert CO2 into two widely-used chemicals. Acetone is mainly used in...