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Schoder KA, Krümpel J, Müller J, Lemmer A. Effects of Environmental and Nutritional Conditions on Mycelium Growth of Three Basidiomycota. MYCOBIOLOGY 2024; 52:124-134. [PMID: 38690030 PMCID: PMC11057518 DOI: 10.1080/12298093.2024.2341492] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2024] [Accepted: 04/05/2024] [Indexed: 05/02/2024]
Abstract
In recent decades, an enormous potential of fungal-based products with characteristics equal to, or even outperforming, classic petroleum-derived products has been acknowledged. The production of these new materials uses mycelium, a root-like structure of fungi consisting of a mass of branching, thread-like hyphae. Optimizing the production of mycelium-based materials and fungal growth under technical conditions needs to be further investigated. The main objective of this study was to select fast-growing fungi and identify optimized incubation conditions to obtain a dense mycelium mat in a short time. Further, the influence of the initial substrate characteristics on hyphae expansion was determined. Fungal isolates of Ganoderma lucidum, Pleurotus ostreatus, and Trametes versicolor were cultivated for seven days on substrate mixtures consisting of various proportions of pine bark and cotton fibers. Furthermore, the substrates were mixed with 0, 2, and 5 wt.% calcium carbonate (CaCO3), and the incubator was flushed with 0, 5, and 10 vol.% carbon dioxide (CO2). All samples grew in the dark at 26 °C and a relative humidity of 80%. Evaluation of growth rate shows that cotton fiber-rich substrates performed best for all investigated fungi. Although Pleurotus ostreatus and Trametes versicolor showed comparatively high growth rates of up to 5.4 and 5.3 mm d-1, respectively, mycelium density was thin and transparent. Ganoderma lucidum showed a significantly denser mycelium at a maximum growth rate of 3.3 mm d-1 on a cotton fiber-rich substrate (75 wt.%) without CaCO3 but flushed with 5 vol.% CO2 during incubation.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Johannes Krümpel
- State Institute of Agricultural Engineering and Bioenergy, University of Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Germany
| | - Joachim Müller
- Agricultural Engineering in the Tropics and Subtropics, University of Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Germany
| | - Andreas Lemmer
- State Institute of Agricultural Engineering and Bioenergy, University of Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Germany
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Shen SC, Lee NA, Lockett WJ, Acuil AD, Gazdus HB, Spitzer BN, Buehler MJ. Robust myco-composites: a biocomposite platform for versatile hybrid-living materials. MATERIALS HORIZONS 2024; 11:1689-1703. [PMID: 38315077 DOI: 10.1039/d3mh01277h] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2024]
Abstract
Fungal mycelium, a living network of filamentous threads, thrives on lignocellulosic waste and exhibits rapid growth, hydrophobicity, and intrinsic regeneration, offering a potential means to create next-generation sustainable and functional composites. However, existing hybrid-living mycelium composites (myco-composites) are tremendously constrained by conventional mold-based manufacturing processes, which are only compatible with simple geometries and coarse biomass substrates that enable gas exchange. Here we introduce a class of structural myco-composites manufactured with a novel platform that harnesses high-resolution biocomposite additive manufacturing and robust mycelium colonization with indirect inoculation. We leverage principles of hierarchical composite design and selective nutritional provision to create a robust myco-composite that is scalable, tunable, and compatible with complex geometries. To illustrate the versatility of this platform, we characterize the impact of mycelium colonization on mechanical and surface properties of the composite. We found that our method yields the strongest mycelium composite reported to date with a modulus of 160 MPa and tensile strength of 0.72 MPa, which represents over a 15-fold improvement over typical mycelium composites, and further demonstrate unique applications with fabrication of foldable bio-welded containers and flexible mycelium textiles. This study bridges the gap between biocomposite and hybrid-living materials research, opening the door to advanced structural mycelium applications and demonstrating a novel platform for development of diverse hybrid-living materials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sabrina C Shen
- Laboratory for Atomistic and Molecular Mechanics (LAMM), Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Ave. 1-165, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA.
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
| | - Nicolas A Lee
- Laboratory for Atomistic and Molecular Mechanics (LAMM), Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Ave. 1-165, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA.
- School of Architecture and Planning, Media Lab, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 75 Amherst Street, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
| | - William J Lockett
- Laboratory for Atomistic and Molecular Mechanics (LAMM), Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Ave. 1-165, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA.
- MIT Center for Art, Science & Technology (CAST), Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Ave. 10-183, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
- Department of Media, Culture, and Communication, New York University, 239 Greene Street, New York, NY, 10003, USA
| | - Aliai D Acuil
- Laboratory for Atomistic and Molecular Mechanics (LAMM), Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Ave. 1-165, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA.
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
| | - Hannah B Gazdus
- School of Architecture and Planning, Media Lab, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 75 Amherst Street, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
| | - Branden N Spitzer
- Laboratory for Atomistic and Molecular Mechanics (LAMM), Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Ave. 1-165, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA.
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
| | - Markus J Buehler
- Laboratory for Atomistic and Molecular Mechanics (LAMM), Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Ave. 1-165, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA.
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
- Center for Computational Science and Engineering, Schwarzman College of Computing, 77 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
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