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Title: The effect of cellulases on the biodegradation and morphology of naturally colored cotton fibers

Conference ·
OSTI ID:559879
; ;  [1];  [2]
  1. Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (United States)
  2. Natural Cotton Colours, Inc., Wickenburg, AZ (United States)

We have investigated the effect of cellulases on the biodegradation and structure of natural colored cotton (Foxfibre{reg_sign}). Compared to the white cotton and palo verde (sage green) varieties, buffalo (mocha brown) and coyote (reddish brown) varieties were quite resistant to hydrolysis by Trichoderma reesei celluclast and purified cellobiohydrolase I (CBH I) under the conditions of the assay, but binding of CBH I to buffalo cotton was unaffected. Sodium hydroxide extracts of all the colored cotton varieties were found to be strong inhibitors of cellulase activity and the buffalo cotton was labile in that the inhibitory effect decreased over time in the presence of cellulase; incubation of {beta}-glucosidase with the extract also decreased the inhibition. The chemical composition of the inhibitor is currently under investigation. Atomic force microscopy of the colored cotton fibers with bound cellulase components should prove useful in the context of elucidating the effect of binding on the morphology of cellulose fibers.

OSTI ID:
559879
Report Number(s):
CONF-970443-; TRN: 97:005895-0029
Resource Relation:
Conference: 213. national meeting of the American Chemical Society, San Francisco, CA (United States), 13-17 Apr 1997; Other Information: PBD: 1997; Related Information: Is Part Of 213th ACS national meeting; PB: 2904 p.
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English