Thescope and usefulness of bio-engineered products are constantly increasing.Clothing is an ideal medium to implant mobile bio-environments. Nicheapplications for bioactive fabrics exist in the medical & defenseindustries, for e.g. drug, producing bandages or protective clothing withhighly sensitive cellular sensors. However, bio-fabrics may form the basis of acompletely new line of commercial products as well. Fabrics that literally eatodors with genetically engineered bacteria, self-cleaning fabrics and fabricsthat continually regenerate water and dust repellents.

Clothingis an obvious habitat for biological micro-machines and is specificallydesigned to provide a comfortable environment for living cells. These materialsare generally bio-friendly (non-toxic to cells); and sources of heat, moistureand even nutrients for cellular micro-devices are all readily available fromthe human body. There are many obvious applications that a clothing basedbioreactor might be able to accomplish. The control of odors in clothes andshoes could be accomplished by secretion of deodorizers of by the bacterialdigestion of odor producing proteins. Imbedded bacteria could continuallyreplenish water repellent coatings on jackets or shirts, or self-cleaning clothescould be envisioned in which oil and protein-digesting bacteria actcontinuously.

Bioactivetextiles have thus carved out a niche for itself both in the market and on theresearch field. To read more,

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