SweTree Technologies has considerable knowledge of genes involved in modification of properties of cellulose fibers.



The Fiber Modificaton Platform is strongly rooted in the fundamental research carried out in the Wood Biotechnology Laboratory and the Swedish Center for Biomimetic Fiber Engineering , located at the Swedish Royal Institute of Technology (KTH). This platform concentrates on developing enabling technologies to alter the physical and chemical properties of cellulosic fibers, incorporating fiber enzymology, polysaccharide chemistry, polymer science, and materials science.

A key technology in this platform involves the use of the plant enzyme XET to produce modified xyloglucan polysaccharides, which carry specific chemical functional groups. Xyloglucan is a plant polysaccharide that has an intrinsic, high binding affinity for cellulose. Consequently, simply mixing modified xyloglucan with cellulose in water at ambient temperature attaches the functional group to the surface of the fiber. A wide range of cellulose substrates can be used, including cotton, wood pulp, and regenerated cellulose. Similarly, the choice of functional group is essentially unlimited, which opens up possibilities in a wide range of application areas.

• This method of modifying wood fiber properties is highly flexible and avoids the loss of fiber integrity and strength, which otherwise occur in direct modification of cellulose.

Read more at publications...