Splitting the difference: Genetically-tunable mycelial films using natural genetic variations in <i>schizophyllum commune</i>

Viraj Whabi; Jianping Xu

doi:10.1016/j.jobab.2025.05.004

Volume 10 Issue 3

Aug. 2025

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Viraj Whabi, Jianping Xu. Splitting the difference: Genetically-tunable mycelial films using natural genetic variations in schizophyllum commune[J]. Journal of Bioresources and Bioproducts, 2025, 10(3): 336-359. doi: 10.1016/j.jobab.2025.05.004

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Viraj Whabi, Jianping Xu. Splitting the difference: Genetically-tunable mycelial films using natural genetic variations in schizophyllum commune[J]. Journal of Bioresources and Bioproducts, 2025, 10(3): 336-359. doi: 10.1016/j.jobab.2025.05.004

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Splitting the difference: Genetically-tunable mycelial films using natural genetic variations in schizophyllum commune

doi: 10.1016/j.jobab.2025.05.004

Viraj Whabi,
Jianping Xu^,

Department of Biology, McMaster University, Ontario L8S 4K1, Canada

More Information

Corresponding author: E-mail address: jpxu@mcmaster.ca (J. Xu)
Received Date: 2025-02-05
Accepted Date: 2025-05-15
Rev Recd Date: 2025-04-21

Available Online: 2025-05-25

Publish Date: 2025-08-01

Abstract

Abstract

Fungal mycelium, renowned for its robust fiber structure, is gaining widespread attention as a sustainable alternative to traditional plastics and textiles. Strain optimization offers the opportunity to improve these mycelial materials by systematically selecting specific phenotypes that have ideal mechanical and physiochemical properties. Schizophyllum commune, the common split gill mushroom, is a cosmopolitan species with over 23 000 mating types and abundant genetic diversity. In this study, this species was used as a model to explore the potential of leveraging natural genetic variation within species to develop fungal mycelial materials with diverse properties. Specifically, four divergent monokaryotic strains of S. commune sourced globally were selected, and through mating, 12 dikaryotic progeny, each with their unique combinations of nuclear and mitochondrial deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) were derived. These 16 strains were assessed for their growth in both solid and liquid media. Their mycelia from liquid media were further processed, including by linking with two different crosslinkers, polyethylene glycol 400, and glycerol, to form mycelial films. Mechanical testing and surface characterization showed that the mycelial films differed greatly in a diversity of features, from water retention to strength, ductility, morphology, and hydrophobicity. Moreover, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy showed that different strains had unique chemical fingerprints revealing diverse cell wall composition that interfaced with each of the crosslinkers uniquely. Statistical analyses revealed that, along with the highly influential crosslinker effects, nuclear-mitochondrial genotype interactions were key factors in tuning the performances of these materials. The two-layer tunability of the fungal materials points to the novel potential for genetically optimized strains, such as through protoplasting to separate nuclei in dikaryons to monokaryons with new nuclear-mitochondrial combinations and/or protoplast fusion to artificially create novel dikaryons, with tailored mycelial materials properties for applications in textiles, coatings, and mycoremediation.
- Fungineering,
- Pure mycelial materials,
- Monokaryon-dikaryon comparisons,
- Nuclear-mitochondrial interactions,
- Genotype-plasticizer interactions

Author contributions
Investigation: Viraj Whabi
Formal analysis: Viraj Whabi
Evaluated the statistical significance: Viraj Whabi
Writing-original draft: Viraj Whabi
Conceptualization: Jianping Xu
Writing-review editing: Jianping Xu
Declaration of competing interest
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
Availability of data
The raw data that support the findings of this study are available upon request.
Peer review under the responsibility of Editorial Office of Journal of Bioresources and Bioproducts.

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References(70)

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