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Specialty Chemicals

Octarine Bio and Ginkgo Bioworks partner on fermented pigments

by Craig Bettenhausen
May 18, 2023 | A version of this story appeared in Volume 101, Issue 16

 

A row of green and purple liquids in glass tubes.
Credit: Ginkgo Bioworks
Ginkgo Bioworks and Octarine Bio's first target is violacein, a purple bisindole pigment with antimicrobial, antioxidant, and ultraviolet protection activity.

The synthetic biology firms Octarine Bio and Ginkgo Bioworks are working together to develop dyestuffs and other specialty chemicals made by modifying the biosynthetic pathways around tryptophan, an amino acid. The firms say violacein and its derivatives could replace petrochemical-based textile pigments. Octarine brings expertise in enzyme optimization to the partnership, and Ginkgo will leverage its genetic engineering tool kit.

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