Tag: BioTech

Foliage can be used to make sustainable paper and packaging material. Similarly, a Swedish startup is using seagrass that has been washed ashore to manufacture environmentally-friendly yarn. Until now the plant, which is present in large quantities on beaches, has simply been discarded. A recent feasibility study has shown it can be made into yarn without the addition of...

In the absence of DNA, hair molecules could hold the key to criminal cases thanks to a special protein fragment (peptide). Now, research conducted by a California-based team has highlighted how a different peptide could be crucial in the fight against skin cancer. Dangerously advanced melanoma cause the body’s catestatin levels to drop. In normal circumstances, catestatin promotes immune,...

Pancreatic cancer can be arrested by vitamin D, which is also vital for the function of human immune systems, as well as for bone, muscle and gum development. Yet one in six are vitamin D deficient. To cover the growing demand for additional vitamin D supplements, a French startup is using biosynthesis to produce vitamin D3-oil from mealworms. The...

Waste wood isn’t just suitable as a sustainable polystyrene substitute. Now, a Finnish research team has created an alternative to petroleum-based resin using sawdust and straw. The presence of petroleum-based bonding agents makes it tricky to recycle composites, which are used for wind turbines, boats and RVs. The team extracted cellulose and hemicellulose from the waste wood, successfully developing...

A maze-like material keeps insects away from plants. In France, meanwhile, a startup is creating sustainable pesticides from plant scents as around 80% of harmful insects are drawn to by these odours. The team deciphers which scents are particularly attractive for different species, and replicates the molecules in the lab. These can be used for the targeted defence of...

Small villages can inspire innovation for the circular economy in cocoa production. Now an Oxford-based startup is working on a sustainable substitute to the cocoa bean. Sound familiar? This time rather than cell cultures the team is using the plant’s pod. First, the shells are chopped up and, using an age-old Japanese method, fermented with the help of fungi. The...

We have octopuses to thank for sustainable suncream. Environmentally-friendly containers for the cosmetics industry, in turn, are the brainchild of a female founder’s startup in London. Their process entails fermenting plant waste and converting it into bio-based synthetic materials. They can be hard or soft, matt or glossy. The products have been certified for home composting by a testing organisation...

For efficiency, the human brain often takes snapshots. But with age, inflamed brain cells can lead to memory loss or dementia. Enter a US-based research team and its nasal spray which can stop or even reverse the process. Made using bio-molecules (microRNAs) developed from neural stem cells, it is delivered via the nose into the wall of the hippocampus....