

Biofilm developed to power wearable electronics with sweat
University of Massachusetts Amherst researchers have invented a biofilm that sticks to the skin like a Band-Aid to harnesses sweat for electricity that could power wearable devices. More
University of Massachusetts Amherst researchers have invented a biofilm that sticks to the skin like a Band-Aid to harnesses sweat for electricity that could power wearable devices. More
Material research firm Studio Lionne van Deursen has showcased its Unfold designs, made from a material created by bacteria, as part of the Isola Design District exhibition at Milan Design Week. More
New York streetwear label Public School has collaborated with material scientist Theanne Schiros to create a pair of biofabricated trainers using a leather alternative grown by microbes. More
Studio Lionne van Deursen is presenting a material research project and lighting range made using bacteria for VDF x Ventura Projects. More
Bacteria from a boggy World War Two bomb crater generate kaleidoscopic light forms inside this telescope-like tube by Dutch designer Teresa van Dongen.
Central Saint Martins graduate Rosie Broadhead has integrated live bacteria into the fibres of clothing that reduces body odour, encourages cell renewal and improves the immune system, when activated by sweat. More
Dutch designer Teresa van Dongen has developed a sustainable light source from living organisms that require regular nourishment in return for electricity. More
Bacteria cultures grown on resin plates decorated these LED lamps by designer Jan Klingler, on show as part of the Young Swedish Design exhibition at ArkDes in Stockholm. More
Spanish architect Alberto Villanueva's Mars Utopia concept would see the planet transformed into an inhabitable environment using towers formed by bacteria (+ slideshow). More
Teams from MIT Media Lab and the Royal College of Art have used bacteria to design a "bio-skin" fabric that peels back in reaction to sweat and humidity (+ slideshow). More
Designer Ori Elisar has developed a bacterial ink and grown typographical symbols in a petri dish. Here are more stories featuring microbes, including a lamp powered by glowing octopus bacteria (pictured), clothes grown from single-cell organisms and cheese made from the sweat and tears of celebrities.
Jerusalem designer Ori Elisar has used a bacteria-based ink to grow a Hebrew alphabet in the lab for his Living Language type experiment. More
Graduate shows 2015: Royal College of Art graduate YunTing Lin has created a new material from plant fibres and naturally fermented cellulose, and used it to form a storage system and speakers (+ slideshow). More
Designer and researcher Neri Oxman has successfully 3D-printed one of her "wearable skins" and filled its hollow tubes with a bacterial luminescent liquid to represent how it could host photosynthetic organisms (+ slideshow). More
A biologist and a designer are developing a bacteria and yeast "micro-factory" that could one day enable consumers to grow their own products at home (+ slideshow). More
Royal College of Art student Paul Gong has imagined how synthetic biology could be used to modify the human body so it can consume and digest rotten food. More
Dezeen and MINI Frontiers: Dutch designer Teresa van Dongen explains how she created a lamp powered by bioluminescent bacteria usually found on octopuses, in this movie filmed in Eindhoven. More
Dutch designer Teresa van Dongen has filled a glass tube with octopus bacteria to create a zero-electricity lamp that glows blue when disturbed (+ movie). More
Designer Sammy Jobbins Wells has stretched material made by bacteria over structural frames to create a set of wearable objects (+ slideshow). More
Dezeen and MINI Frontiers: Dutch designer Daan Roosegaarde is exploring ways of using bio-luminescent bacteria found in jellyfish and mushrooms to create glow-in-the-dark trees that could replace street lights. More