Project description
Bioengineered natural colour cotton fibres make for a greener textile industry
Commercial cotton fibres are mainly varying shades of white but may also appear yellowish in colour because of poor environmental conditions during growth or storage. This discolouration is removed through bleaching, colouring and other processes, resulting in high levels of water usage and the production of hazardous effluents. The EU-funded Colour cotton project will bioengineer high-value eco-friendly naturally coloured cotton fibres by downregulating key genes in the phenylpropanoid pathway to increase fibre whiteness. By reorientating the metabolic flux from the phenylpropanoid pathway into a heterologously expressed betalain biosynthesis pathway, researchers will engineer novel natural colour cotton. The resulting products represent a biotechnological solution for a more environmentally friendly textile industry by significantly reducing environmental impacts.
Objective
Cotton fibre is one of our most important textile resources. Most commercial cotton fibres are various shades of white but can be yellowish because of poor environmental conditions during growth or storage. A bleaching step is employed to address this issue during cotton fabric processing. After cotton fibre is spun into yarn, a dyeing process is applied to colour natural fibre to satisfy costumer’s demand. Additional industrial processes are needed to remove unfavourable natural colours and then add desirable colours to the yarn. Each step costs substantial amounts of energy but more importantly causes serious water and air pollution. More than 100 litres of water are required to dye one kilogram of cotton. The industrial effluents are rich in hazardous material. To address these issues, the proposed research will aim to bioengineer high value eco-friendly naturally coloured cotton fibre. Two overall strategies will be pursued. Firstly, by down-regulating key genes in the phenylpropanoid pathway, we aim to reduce fibre yellowish to increase fibre whiteness for the premium market. Second, by reorientating the metabolic flux from the phenylpropanoid pathway into a heterologously expressed betalain biosynthesis pathway, we aim to engineer novel natural colour cotton. The prospective products will significantly alleviate the environmental issues of the textile industry where 20% of global water pollution is produced and provide a biotechnological solution for a more environmentally friendly textile industry.
Fields of science
- engineering and technologymaterials engineeringcolors
- engineering and technologymaterials engineeringsynthetic dyes
- medical and health sciencesmedical biotechnologygenetic engineering
- engineering and technologymaterials engineeringtextiles
- engineering and technologyenvironmental engineeringair pollution engineering
Keywords
Programme(s)
Funding Scheme
MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)Coordinator
CB2 1TN Cambridge
United Kingdom