How to clean with bacteria
From bacteria to cellulose fibers and lab grown paper. A greek project paves the way to save trees.
Within the framework of the 1st Student Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, which was supported by Bayer Hellas AG, two scientists from the Biotechnology Department and the National Research Foundation developed a paper out of the bacterium Acetobacter xylinum. The bacteria are grown in suitable nutrient material and produce a mixture which contains cellulose fibers. These fibers are cleaned of cellular debris and mixed with materials that determine the color and texture and pressed into sheets. The project aims to counter the worldwide net loss of 10 billion trees each year and the resulting forest reduction of 0.3% annually.
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