Surprising New Trends For Synthetic Biology In Fashion

Featured image above: Examples of mycelium-based consumer products by established designer brands: A Sylvania by Hermès, B. Stan Smith by Adidas, C. Yoga mat by Lululemon, D. Mylo garment by Stella McCartney. Vandelook et al. Fungal biol. biotechnol. (2021) 8:20 CC BY 4.0.

Introduction to Synthetic Biology in Fashion

When I first started looking into synthetic biology in fashion, I assumed it might be a bit too “fluffy” for my interests. Fashion, after all, isn’t usually the first thing that comes to mind when we think about serious scientific advancements. But the more I explored the field, the more I realized how much it ties into critical issues like sustainability, resource efficiency, and even the ethics of production. What I thought would be surface-level turned out to be a fascinating and genuinely impactful intersection of science and style.

The infusion of synthetic biology into the fashion industry is transforming how materials are created and used. With tools like genetic engineering and microbial production, scientists are developing textiles that go far beyond conventional fabrics in both function and sustainability. This work addresses longstanding challenges, such as textile waste, carbon emissions, and the reliance on traditional petroleum-based materials, while introducing renewable materials with desirable properties of enhanced strength and adaptability.

The possibilities are extraordinary. From recombinant spider silk with outstanding mechanical properties to bacterial cellulose and bio-based dyes, synthetic biology offers a toolkit that could reshape the very fabric of our everyday lives. This post explores how these innovations are being developed, their potential applications, and the broader implications for the textile industry and beyond.

The Environmental Footprint of the Fashion Industry

The Evolution of Fashion Materials

Natural fibers like cotton, wool, and silk served humanity for centuries thanks to their availability and versatility. In the early 20th century, synthetic fibers like nylon and polyester entered the market, offering durability and scalability. However, these petroleum-based materials also brought rising carbon emissions and enduring textile waste. Over time, fast fashion intensified resource demands, fueling water use and chemical pollution. Public concern has since grown, prompting designers and manufacturers to seek more sustainable options.

Problems with Conventional Synthetics

Many synthetic textiles, including polyester and nylon, depend on fossil fuels. They emit high carbon outputs and often require substantial water and energy during production. Once discarded, these fabrics can linger in landfills for decades, leaching microplastics and posing hazards to ecosystems. Incinerating them emits greenhouse gases, adding another layer to the industry’s waste dilemma.

Natural Fibers and Resource Demands

Even seemingly greener choices can carry hidden costs. A single pair of jeans may consume about 2,000 gallons (7,600 liters) of water for cotton farming, fabric processing, and finishing. Wool production requires vast grazing land, and cotton farming often involves pesticide use. Without responsible stewardship, these materials still strain water supplies and degrade habitats.

Toxins and Pollution

Environmental impacts extend beyond fiber production. Petroleum-derived dyes contaminate water and require extensive wastewater treatment. As textiles decompose in landfills, they release greenhouse gases. Meanwhile, fast fashion accelerates consumption cycles, multiplying the volume of discarded garments and exacerbating pollution issues.

Synthetic Biology in Fashion: a Shift Toward Cleaner Materials

Reducing fossil-fuel reliance and adopting improved dye processes helps mitigate damage. Synthetic biology in fashion offers a promising path forward. By engineering materials like recombinant spider silk or engineered cellulose, producers can lower water use and avoid the intensive farming of cotton. These lab-grown fibers rely on cheap feedstock, such as sugars or industrial byproducts, trimming the environmental footprint. Merging modern engineering with natural systems points toward a more sustainable, efficient way of producing textiles.

Understanding Synthetic Biology

Defining Synthetic Biology

At its core, synthetic biology is about designing and constructing biological systems with specific functions. Synthetic biology in fashion applies life’s building blocks to solve practical problems. This new discipline blends elements of genetic engineering, chemical engineering, and computational biology to create materials and processes that were once the stuff of science fiction.

Applications of Synthetic Biology in Fashion

In the textile industry, synthetic biology enables the creation of innovative materials by reprogramming microorganisms to produce fibers, dyes, and coatings. Techniques like CRISPR and gene editing allow for precise alterations to DNA, enabling the development of recombinant silk proteins, bio-based dyes, and even biodegradable alternatives to petroleum-derived fiber materials.

Applications Beyond Fashion

While fashion is an exciting application, the technology has proven valuable across fields. In medicine, synthetic biology materials are advancing biomedical applications, such as creating biocompatible implants or drug delivery systems. Agriculture benefits from renewable materials that reduce dependence on synthetic pesticides and fertilizers. Even environmental solutions are emerging, like microbes designed to break down pollutants or capture carbon.

From Lab to Market

Synthetic biology is no longer confined to academic research; it’s moving into everyday applications. As synthetic biologists refine their methods and scale production, the potential for large repetitive proteins, fast-growing bacteria, and cheap feedstocks is becoming a reality. These advances could usher in a new era of sustainable clothing production, offering solutions to various industry challenges and setting the stage for widespread adoption.

Benefits of Synthetic Biology in Fashion

Sustainability at the Core

One clear advantage of synthetic biology in textiles is lowered environmental impact. Renewables like recombinant spider silk or mycelium leather reduce petroleum dependence and help curb carbon emissions, water use, and overall waste. Bio-based dyes can eliminate toxic chemicals, protecting ecosystems and workers alike.

Unlocking New Design Possibilities

Synthetic biology gives designers the freedom to create fibers with novel textures, strengths, and functions. These textiles may heal themselves, adapt to changing temperatures, or biodegrade faster. By integrating sustainability with imaginative design, the industry moves beyond simply replacing one fabric with another.

Ethical Production Practices

Animal-free options, such as mycelium leather or lab-grown textiles, avoid harming animals while offering high-quality performance. This appeals to consumers seeking cruelty-free products. Meanwhile, circular economies thrive on synthetic biology solutions that enable reuse, recycling, and safer disposal.

The Tunable Properties of Synthetic Materials

Engineered fibers are uniquely customizable. By modifying their molecular makeup, developers can alter strength, elasticity, texture, and even biodegradability. For example, synthetic spider silk can be made more durable or flexible, mycelium leather can vary in thickness, and bacterial cellulose can manage breathability. This tunability supports performance goals while improving sustainability.

Synthetic Biology in Fashion is a Catalyst for Innovation Across Industries

Developments in synthetic biology don’t stop with fashion. Renewable fibers and high-strength materials can benefit biomedical fields, construction, and more. Advances in lab-grown materials for clothing translate into progress for medical sutures, implants, and other cross-industry applications, illustrating the far-reaching potential of engineered biology.

Innovative Materials Reshaping Fashion

Bioengineered Spider Silk and Mussel-Enhanced Fibers

Bioengineered Spider Silk: Strength and Versatility

Synthetic biology in fashion leverages biological systems to create renewable materials, bypassing fossil-based inputs. A standout example is recombinant spider silk, produced inside engineered microbes such as bacteria, yeast, or even goats. These organisms are genetically programmed to produce large repetitive proteins, the foundation of spider silk’s extraordinary strength and flexibility. Using cheap feedstock like sugars and optimizing conditions such as pH and temperature, scientists cultivate spider silk proteins efficiently.

Once secreted, these proteins are harvested and spun into strong fibers. Spider silk combines tensile strength comparable to steel with unmatched elasticity, making it ideal for applications like medical sutures, tissue scaffolds, and high-performance textiles. This ability to tailor spider silk for specific uses highlights its versatility and promise as a sustainable alternative to synthetic fibers.

Mussel-Enhanced Fibers: Hybrid Innovation

To further enhance spider silk’s properties, researchers integrate mussel foot proteins (MFPs), naturally adhesive compounds that increase fiber toughness and binding capabilities. This hybrid material merges the strength of spider silk with mussel-inspired adhesion, producing fibers that outperform traditional materials in durability and versatility. Applications range from coatings to protective gear, offering unique solutions for industries beyond fashion.

Scaling these materials for industrial production is now a primary focus. Advances in fermentation and bioreactor technologies aim to lower costs and improve yields, enabling these fibers to compete with petroleum-based alternatives. With a focus on sustainability and performance, bioengineered fibers represent a major step forward in reducing environmental impacts while meeting modern material demands.

Recombinant Collagen Textiles

Recombinant collagen textiles follow a similar logic. Instead of relying on livestock for collagen, scientists engineer microorganisms—often bacteria or yeast—to carry the DNA needed to produce collagen’s repeating protein units. After feeding these cells a nutrient-rich solution, they produce strands of collagen that can be purified and spun into fibers. The resulting materials resemble animal-derived collagen in strength and elasticity, but appear without the environmental impacts tied to raising animals. This approach results in fabrics that balance durability with a lighter resource footprint, advancing the biodegradable replacement of petroleum-derived fiber materials.

Mycelium Leather and Algae-Based Textiles

Mycelium leather starts with fungal spores placed into substrates like sawdust or agricultural byproducts. Under the right humidity and temperature, mycelium grows into dense mats. After harvesting and processing, these mats assume qualities similar to animal hides—flexible, strong, and suitable for finishing treatments. Unlike traditional leather production, this process does not require the use of toxic chemicals or tanning agents linked to pollution.

Advances in genetic engineering are enhancing mycelium leather production. Tools like CRISPR/Cas9 enable scientists to modify fungal strains for better material properties, such as increased density, strength, and elasticity. For instance, in Schizophyllum commune, disabling the sc3 hydrophobin gene produced denser, stronger materials. Additionally, co-cultivation with engineered bacterial strains can boost elasticity, provide UV protection, and reduce contamination, making production more efficient and customizable.

Algae-based textiles emerge from cultivated algae strains selected for their cellulose or protein content. Producers maintain algae cultures in controlled bioreactors and then harvest the raw material. After extracting and refining these algae-based components, the fibers can be spun into yarn and woven into fabrics. This avoids dependence on petroleum and reduces water use, presenting a cleaner route to creating breathable, lightweight fabrics.

Algae-based textiles benefit from advances in genetic engineering that enhance algae’s ability to produce cellulose or proteins more efficiently. Engineered strains can grow faster in bioreactors and yield fibers with improved strength and flexibility. These modifications optimize production while maintaining the material’s sustainability benefits.

Bacterial Cellulose and Bio-Based Dyes

Bacterial cellulose relies on certain bacterial strains that secrete cellulose fibers when fed simple sugars. These fibers form gels or films that can be collected, purified, and spun into textiles. The resulting material often displays excellent moisture management and a soft touch. Coloring these new textiles uses bio-based dyes, generated by microorganisms engineered to produce stable pigments. Unlike use of toxic chemical dyes, these pigments bond well without leaving harmful residues, aligning with more responsible production methods.

Scaling Up Applications of Synthetic Biology in Fashion

All these approaches move toward industrial scale as techniques improve. By refining molecular interaction and fine-tuning growth conditions, these methods produce materials suited to both everyday applications and biomedical applications. This versatility allows designers, manufacturers, and other stakeholders to integrate these synthetic biology materials into established supply chains. In doing so, they reduce reliance on traditional petroleum-based materials and encourage more sustainable sourcing. Over time, these integrated efforts can lower the sector’s impact on ecosystems, pointing to a more thoughtful and adaptable future for textiles.

A Comparison of Synthetic Biology Textile Fibers

Benefits of Synthetic Biology in Fashion

Sustainability at the Core

One of the most significant advantages of integrating synthetic biology in fashion is its potential to reduce the industry’s environmental footprint. By replacing traditional petroleum-based materials with renewable materials, such as recombinant spider silk and mycelium leather, synthetic biology reduces reliance on non-renewable resources. These innovations address critical issues like carbon emissions, water use, and textile waste, offering a more sustainable foundation for clothing production. Additionally, bio-based dyes eliminate the need for toxic chemicals, making processes cleaner and safer for ecosystems.

Synthetic Biology in Fashion Unlocks New Design Possibilities

Synthetic biology enables the creation of materials with tunable properties, allowing designers to explore entirely new textures, strengths, and functions. Imagine self-healing fabrics, garments that adapt to environmental conditions, or textiles designed with biodegradable replacements for short-term uses like fast fashion. These advancements give designers the freedom to push creative boundaries while meeting the growing demand for sustainability.

Synthetic Biology in Fashion as an Ethical alternative

The rise of animal-free alternatives, such as mycelium leather and lab-grown textiles, offers a path to ethical production that avoids harm to animals. These materials provide a cruelty-free option without sacrificing quality, making them a compelling choice for conscious consumers. Furthermore, the use of synthetic biology materials supports circular economies, ensuring that products can be reused, recycled, or safely decomposed.

The Tunable Properties of Synthetic Materials

Synthetic materials developed through synthetic biology are uniquely customizable. Properties like strength, elasticity, texture, biodegradability, and pigmentation can be fine-tuned for specific applications by modifying their molecular structures. For instance, synthetic spider silk can be engineered for greater strength or flexibility, mycelium leather for varying thickness and texture, and bacterial cellulose for breathability or transparency. This tunability allows these materials to meet diverse demands while optimizing sustainability and performance.

Synthetic Biology in Fashion Acts as a Catalyst for Innovation Across Industries

While fashion benefits directly, the technologies developed for synthetic biology in fashion also contribute to progress in other sectors. For instance, strong fibers and renewable materials are being adapted for biomedical applications like sutures and implants. This cross-industry influence underscores the versatility of biological systems and highlights the broader value of investing in these breakthroughs.

Driving Innovation: Collaborations and Industry Leaders in Synthetic Biology Fashion

Collaborations Driving Innovation

Synthetic biology in fashion often depends on close cooperation between scientists, engineers, and those who craft final garments. Research teams develop materials at the microbial level, while designers determine how best to use them. For example, Mills Fabrica connects laboratories with established and emerging brands. This support helps promising discoveries reach production lines, ensuring that results leave the lab and enter everyday use.

Several groups stand out in bringing these textiles to market. Modern Meadow cultivates engineered proteins that assemble into materials resembling leather. Instead of raising livestock, its process involves engineered yeast cells that produce collagen-like components. These components form stable, flexible sheets requiring fewer resources and fewer chemical inputs. Similarly, Bolt Threads has pioneered fibers inspired by recombinant spider silk, engineering microbes to produce silk proteins that spin into threads with high strength and elasticity. Meanwhile, firms like Spiber refine microbial fermentation to produce spider silk variants with precise properties.

Companies at the Forefront of Synthetic Biology in Fashion

Mycelium-based options also continue to advance. For instance, companies such as MycoWorks grow fungal networks that form leather-like mats. These mats mimic the attributes of animal hides but avoid problems linked to conventional processes. At the same time, Keel Labs focuses on algae-based textiles, using marine organisms to supply fibers that reduce petroleum reliance and resource consumption.

Moving Toward Scaled Production

As these materials mature, scaling their production is becoming more practical. Improvements in feedstock selection, reactor design, and molecular precision lower costs and increase output. Companies can adjust growth conditions to produce fibers that suit varied applications, from everyday clothing to specialized fabrics for medical uses. With this shift, the entire industry may gain durable, adaptable materials that work at commercial volumes. Such developments prove that as research intersects with design, synthetic biology can refashion production methods to meet changing demands.

Synthetic Materials and Artistic Expression

Rethinking Material and Color Production

Traditional textile creation often depends on petroleum-based inputs and chemical processes. By contrast, synthetic biology in fashion uses engineered microbes and organisms to generate synthetic materials—including fibers, pigments, and structural proteins—through controlled biological growth. This approach treats materials like spider silk, fungal leather, or algae-based fibers as products of guided cultivation rather than extractive methods. The result is a cleaner route that avoids harsh additives and reduces environmental burdens.

Molecular-Level Customization Afforded by Synthetic Biology in Fashion

Engineered proteins, such as recombinant spider silk, offer tunable properties at the molecular scale. Designers and scientists can adjust growth conditions or genetic sequences to incorporate color, texture, or elasticity directly into the fiber. This means that aesthetic qualities and functional traits emerge during production, lowering the need for separate finishing treatments. Such control helps align the creative vision of designers with ecological goals, blending artistry and precision in one step.

Creative Pioneers Applying Synthetic Biology in Fashion

Designers like Natsai Audrey Chieza and Suzanne Lee explore processes where bacteria, fungi, or algae both produce the base material and provide color. Some microbes can generate pigments that bond naturally with emerging fibers. In these cases, the textile and its hue form simultaneously, eliminating separate dyeing stages. This synergy transforms the creative process, allowing for unique patterns and shades dictated by biological activity rather than chemical intervention.

Integrating Material and Hue

When microbes supply both structure and pigment, the textile gains its defining characteristics inherently. Adjusting nutrients or environmental conditions can yield stable colors without extra processing steps. This integrated system reduces complexity, stabilizes outcomes, and cuts resource use.

The Integration of Synthetic Biology in Fashion is Producing a Shift in Design Philosophy

These innovations prompt a broader reconsideration of how textiles come to life. With qualities like color, durability, and texture embedded in the material’s formation, designers can focus on form, pattern, and longevity. As synthetic biology refines its methods, it reshapes the boundaries between science and art, opening a landscape where fibers grow into pre-determined forms that reflect both creative intent and environmental responsibility

Challenges and Ethical Considerations

Navigating Public Perception of Synthetic Biology in Fashion

One of the biggest challenges for synthetic biology in fashion is overcoming public skepticism about genetically modified organisms (GMOs). While materials like recombinant spider silk or bacterial cellulose offer sustainable alternatives, some consumers hesitate to embrace products made through advanced genetic engineering. Building trust through consumer education and transparent communication is critical to ensuring widespread adoption of these innovations.

Regulatory Hurdles for Synthetic Biology in Fashon

The path to scaling synthetic biology materials often involves navigating complex regulatory landscapes. Ensuring compliance with safety, environmental, and intellectual property standards can delay the release of real products. For example, large-scale production of bio-based dyes or synthetic spider silk requires approval to meet industrial scale requirements while addressing concerns about environmental impacts during manufacturing.

The Economic Barriers for Synthetic Biology in Fashion

Although the potential for mass production is promising, many synthetic biology materials remain costly to produce at scale. High initial investments in infrastructure, research, and development can pose barriers for smaller companies or startups. Additionally, the scalability of some methods—like the microbial production of large repetitive proteins—still requires refinement to achieve cost efficiency and consistent output.

Balancing Innovation with Ethics

As the synbio sector grows, ethical considerations around resource use, labor practices, and environmental sustainability come into sharper focus. While many synthetic biology materials aim to reduce the use of traditional petroleum-based materials, their production processes must avoid creating unintended consequences, such as high energy consumption or over-reliance on specific biological feedstocks. Ensuring a new era of sustainable clothing production requires a commitment to both innovation and responsibility.

The Future of Synthetic Biology in Fashion

Emerging Trends in Synthetic Biology Materials

The future of synthetic biology in fashion promises even more groundbreaking innovations. Smart fabrics capable of responding to environmental conditions, such as heat or moisture, are on the horizon, offering functionality that traditional textiles cannot match. Advances in DNA-specific materials may enable personalized clothing tailored to an individual’s unique biological profile, creating a level of customization previously unimaginable.

Industry Disruption by Synthetic Biology in Fashion

As these technologies mature, they are poised to disrupt traditional manufacturing and supply chains. The textile industry may shift from centralized factories to localized, microbial production hubs, reducing the need for large-scale transportation and lowering carbon emissions. Fast fashion could also see a transformation, with biodegradable and renewable materials offering a sustainable alternative to its waste-heavy practices. Startups and innovators in the synbio sector are already redefining how fashion is conceived, produced, and consumed.

Global Implications for Synthetic Biology in Fashion

The impact of synthetic biology extends far beyond fashion capitals. By reducing the reliance on traditional petroleum-based materials and lowering the environmental footprint of clothing production, these technologies contribute to global sustainable development goals. Developing economies, in particular, could benefit from localized production systems that require fewer resources and create new opportunities for economic growth.

A Vision for a Sustainable Future

The combination of synthetic biology materials, tunable properties, and scalable innovations heralds a new era of sustainable clothing production. As the technology evolves, its potential to merge cutting-edge science with the artistry of fashion offers a path toward an industry that is both innovative and responsible.

Conclusion

A Revolution in Fashion Design

The integration of synthetic biology in fashion is ushering in a transformative era for the textile industry. By leveraging breakthroughs in materials like recombinant spider silk, mycelium leather, and bio-based dyes, we are not only rethinking how fabrics are made but also unlocking new possibilities for sustainability, innovation, and design. These advancements represent a significant breakthrough in reducing environmental impacts, such as textile waste and carbon emissions, while delivering materials with extraordinary properties like strength, elasticity, and biodegradability.

Balancing Promise with Progress

Although there are challenges to scaling these technologies, such as fermentation inefficiencies and resource demands, the benefits far outweigh the hurdles. The continued development of synthetic biology materials is paving the way for scalable solutions that address these concerns while meeting the growing demand for environmentally conscious production. Researchers and companies are innovating rapidly, refining processes to align with sustainability goals.

The Future of Synthetic Biology in Fashion

The future of fashion lies in the synergy between cutting-edge science and artistic expression. As we adopt these renewable materials and explore their tunable properties, we’re crafting a world where fashion is not only beautiful but also responsible. By embracing the potential of synthetic biology, the industry is poised to redefine itself—not just in what it creates, but in how it contributes to a more sustainable and ethical future.

Your Thoughts?

I’ve shared my viewpoint on the fashion industry’s environmental impact and how synthetic biology might change things. Now I’m curious: What do you think of these emerging solutions? If you have ideas, questions, or suggestions, feel free to share them in the comments. This conversation shapes our collective push toward more sustainable fashion.

Additional Materials

Books

• Synthetic Aesthetics: Investigating Synthetic Biology’s Designs on Nature by Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg, Jane Calvert, Pablo Schyfter, Alistair Elfick and Drew Endy. MIT Press 2017. This book explores how biological design contributes to sustainable and circular economic practices, including applications in fashion.
• “Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature” by Janine M. Benyus. Although not exclusively about fashion, this book provides valuable insights into nature-inspired innovations applicable to textiles.

Articles

• Quijano, L., Speight, R., & Payne, A. (2021). “Future fashion, biotechnology and the living world: microbial cell factories and forming new ‘oddkins.’” Continuum, 35(6), 897–913. This article explores how biotechnology may offer fashion alternative ways of forming relationships with the natural world, offering a range of propositions for the role of biotechnology in fashion practice.
• Meenakshi Prabhune (2024) “Synthetic Biology is in Fashion: Scientists are pulling on the protein threads that bind textiles and cosmetics together.” The Scientist. Scientists are leveraging synthetic biology to engineer sustainable, high-performance materials for textiles and cosmetics. By producing recombinant proteins like spider silk and collagen, they aim to replace traditional materials with eco-friendly alternatives.

TED Talks

• “Fashion has a pollution problem — can biology fix it?” | Natsai Audrey Chieza. Natsai Audrey Chieza uses bacterial pigments to create eco-friendly dyes, reducing water waste and chemical runoff in fashion. Others apply synthetic biology to produce mushroom leather and spider-silk yarn, replacing fossil-based materials.

• “Why ‘biofabrication’ is the next industrial revolution” | Suzanne Lee. What if we could “grow” clothes from microbes, furniture from living organisms and buildings with exteriors like tree bark? TED Fellow Suzanne Lee shares exciting developments from the field of biofabrication and shows how it could help us replace major sources of waste, like plastic and cement, with sustainable and eco-friendly alternatives.

Videos

• “Innovation: Reinventing Raw Materials with Biology” | Future Fabrics Expo 2023 – YouTube
  The panelists share their expertise on the potential of synthetic biology and bio-design in reshaping the future of the fashion and textile industry. 
• “Synthetic Biology and the Future of Food, Fashion and Pharma” GENNews Brings together leaders in the field to discuss the myriad ways that synthetic biology could impact our health, lifestyles, and the environment. 

Podcasts

• “Science meets fashion” Alessia and Zio, students of Quantitative Biology and fashion aficionados dive into current trends in fashion and the frontiers of synthetic biology in textile applications. Distinguished guests from both industry and academia.

Websites and Organizations

• Modern Meadow A leading company in biofabrication, specializing in engineered leather alternatives.
• Bolt Threads Innovators in synthetic spider silk and other bioengineered textiles.
• MycoWorks Pioneers in mycelium-based leather production.
• AlgiKnit Focuses on algae-based textile solutions.