Vandelook, S. | Search bioRxiv

bioRxiv2026

Inoculum-to-interface distance tunes productivity in static liquid cultures of wood-decay fungi

Static liquid cultures of wood-decay fungi underpin applications in materials, food, and medicine, yet the mechanisms governing pellicle formation remain poorly understood, limiting rational optimisation at scale. We developed a time-lapse scanning and image analysis platform to visualise the process of pellicle formation across five white-rot fungal species, of which Trametes versicolor formed the thickest, heaviest pellicles and completed formation fastest. Kymographs revealed a reproducible four-stage sequence after inoculation and sedimentation of the biomass: recovery of viability, upward growth, pellicle initiation, and thickening. We formalised this as a model in which the time to pellicle establishment is determined by the distance between the settled biomass and the liquid-air interface. Increasing liquid depth relative to a fixed inoculum loading raised biomass and mat thickness, but prolonged formation. The results identify surface proximity as the dominant predictor of initiation timing. By fixing the inoculum at the liquid-air interface with a membrane, we validated that minimising the distance between the sedimented mycelium and the liquid surface accelerated and stabilised formation without compromising on pellicle biomass. By exposing the most relevant control variables, this work provides a quantitative basis for designing reliable liquid-state surface fermentations for emerging applications involving mycelium.

bioengineering↗

bioRxiv2019

Mechanical, physical and chemical characterisation of mycelium-based composites with different types of lignocellulosic substrates

The current physical goods economy produces materials by extracting finite valuable resources without taking their end of the life and environmental impact into account. Modernity leaves us with devasted landscapes of depleted resources, waste landfill, queries, oil platforms. At the time of the Anthropocene, the various effects the human role has on the constitution of the soils create an acceleration of material entropy. It is the terrestrial entanglement of fungal materials that we investigate in this paper by offering an alternative fabrication paradigm based on the growth of resources rather than on extraction. Unlike the latter, biologically augmented building materials can be grown by combining micro-organisms such as fungal mycelium with agricultural plant-based waste. In this study, we investigate the production process, the mechanical, hygrothermal and chemical properties of mycelium-based composites with different types of lignocellulosic reinforcement fibres combined with a white rot fungus, Trametes versicolor. Together, they form an interwoven three-dimensional filamentous network binding the feedstock into a lightweight material. The mycelium-based material is heat-killed after the growing process. This is the first study reporting the dry density, the Youngs modulus, the compressive stiffness, the stress-strain curves, the thermal conductivity, the water absorption rate and a complete FTIR analyse of mycelium-based composites by making use of a disclosed protocol with T. versicolor and five different type of fibres (hemp, flax, flax waste, softwood, straw) and fibre conditions (loose, chopped, dust, pre-compressed and tow). These experimental results show that mycelium-composites can fulfil the requirements of thermal insulation. The thermal conductivity and water absorption coefficient of the mycelium composites with flax, hemp, and straw have an overall good insulation behaviour in all the aspects compared to conventional unsustainable materials. The conducted tests reveal that the mechanical performances of the mycelium-based composites depend more on the fibre condition, size, and processing than on the chemical composition of the fibres.\n\n\n\nO_FIG O_LINKSMALLFIG WIDTH=200 HEIGHT=78 SRC=\"FIGDIR/small/569749_ufig1.gif\" ALT=\"Figure 1\">\nView larger version (40K):\norg.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@1306289org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@195161corg.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@de9355org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@9aea50_HPS_FORMAT_FIGEXP M_FIG Graphical abstract\n\nC_FIG HighlightsO_LIThe type of fibre influences the colonisation of mycelium: samples containing flax, hemp, straw and flax-waste resulted in a well-developed composite\nC_LIO_LIThe type of fibre has a smaller influence on the compressive stiffness than the fibre processing and size.\nC_LIO_LIPre-compression and chopped fibres (particle size <5mm) improve the compressive mechanical properties of mycelium composites.\nC_LIO_LIThe thermal conductivity and water absorption coefficient of the mycelium composites with flax, hemp, and straw have an overall good insulation behaviour in all the aspects compared to conventional unsustainable materials.\nC_LI

microbiology↗