Stone-washed jeans and Trichoderma mold

[Guest guest]

Thought that some of you might find this interesting,from:

<http://botit.botany.wisc.edu/toms_fungi/nov2004.html>

" Surprisingly, another industry that benefits from the enzymes of

Trichoderma is the blue jean industry. You probably have heard of

stone-washed jeans, or you may even own a pair or two. So you're

probably thinking, " hmmmm, stone-washed jeans-- that must mean they

hire little old ladies with babushkasTM to beat the jeans against the

rocks in the nearby stream. " In fact nothing could be farther from

the truth. They dump the regular jeans into a large vat of water and

add Trichoderma reesii cultures to the mix. The cellulases of the

fungus partially (but irregularly) digest the cotton of the jeans,

making them soft and appearing that they were washed using stones. In

reality, " stone-washed jeans " should be called " fungal-digested

jeans. " Mycologists may be the only people who would buy jeans called

by such a name. However, you probably know that it's all about the

marketing. Interestingly, T. reesii was isolated from a decaying tent

on the south Pacific island of Samoa. (Thanks to s for

this information.) "

May

May Indoor Air Investigations LLC

Cambridge, MA