Researchers from the Swiss Federal Materials Testing and Research Institute (Empa) have found a way to improve wood through the bioluminescence of a fungus. In addition to applications in the technical sector, the luminous wood (photo) could also be processed into design furniture or jewelry.
A team led by mycologist (mushroom specialist, note) Francis Schwarze has been working on the honey fungus Desarmillaria tabescens, a wood parasite. This produces the natural substance luciferin, whose luminescence is stimulated by an enzymatic process. Wood that is infused with fungal threads emits green light.
Aristotle already described glowing wood
“Natural luminous wood was first described about 2,400 years ago by the Greek philosopher Aristotle,” Francis Schwarze said in a statement from Empa on Thursday. The interwoven structure of fungus and wood can be described as a natural biohybrid: a combination of living materials.
What nature seems to achieve effortlessly has so far remained a challenge for biotechnology. The Empa team has now succeeded for the first time in initiating and controlling the process in the laboratory, as evidenced by the work published in the journal ‘Advanced Materials’.
Genetic code of the fungus decoded
Schwarze tracked down the glowing mushrooms in nature, analyzed them in the laboratory and decoded their genetic code. The fungus Desarmillaria tabescens turned out to be particularly powerful. In nature, bioluminescence occurs in a wide variety of organisms. The glow is created thanks to chemical processes that release energy in the form of light and heat.
After initial experiments with different types of wood, Schwarze chose balsa wood, which has a particularly low density. Using spectroscopy, the scientists observed how the fungus breaks down the lignin, which is responsible for stiffness and compressive strength.
The stability of the wood does not suffer
So-called X-ray diffraction analyzes show that the stability of the wood has not been lost: the cellulose, which is responsible for the tensile strength, remained intact, the scientists report.
The biohybrid of mushroom and wood develops its maximum brightness after three months in the incubator. Desarmillaria tabescens likes particularly humid conditions: the balsa wood samples absorbed eight times their weight in moisture during this time.
As soon as it comes into contact with the air, the enzymatic reaction begins in the wood. The green glow reveals its full splendor after ten hours. This process currently takes approximately ten days. “We are now optimizing the laboratory parameters to increase the brightness even further in the future,” says Schwarze.
Source: Krone
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