Advanced microscopy techniques have identified a new fungal species, Rugososporomyces lavoisierae, embedded within a 407-million-year-old plant.

Too long to read? Go for the highlights below. MycoWorks is shutting its South Carolina biomanufacturing plant and transitioning from mycelium cultivation to processing third-party mycelium with its proprietary Rei-Tan™ tanning technology The company's latest Rei-Tan™ innovation increases mycelium tensile strength from approximately 4 MPa to 18 MPa addressing mechanical performance limitations that hindered leather substitution The strategic shift responds to capital scarcity

Too long to read? Go for the highlights below. Researchers at Purdue University engineered textiles combining Ganoderma sessile mycelium with cellulose fibres, achieving water contact angles up to 139° and tensile strength increases of 6× in nonwoven materials and 56% in woven cotton The semi-interpenetrating network leverages hydrophobins on aerial mycelium for water resistance whilst maintaining breathability. Life cycle assessment demonstrates 54% lower ecosystem impact,

Life-cycle comparison highlighting reduced environmental persistence of mycelium-based coatings relative to conventional plastic barriers used in food and textile industries.

Article in partnership with Reshape Biotech , a Danish company that develops advanced lab automation robots and a cloud-based AI platform to accelerate biological research and development. Most readers here will know mycelium as a capable, adaptable builder of structures. In forest soils it colonises particulate matter, threads itself into gaps, and stabilises the whole. Visibuilt ’s work takes that familiar behaviour and applies it to a long‑standing industrial material: mi