Eco-benign fungal colorants: sources and applications in textiles

Abstract

Color plays a pivotal role in textile industry with wide usage of varieties of chemical entities. Synthetic dyes and colorants are being used extensively in the present textile and dyeing industrial scenarios. Extensive use of synthetic dyes in textile industries has many drawbacks and constitutes environmental concern. In the recent years there has been an intensive research for the practical application of natural colorants on textiles as a feasible alternative to synthetic dyes. The aim of this review is to discuss the variety of characteristic colorants produced by fungi and to enlist its possible applications in textiles.