Effect of the Cell Membrane Complex on Dyeing of Wool Fibers with Hematein

Abstract

We have found the difference on the color between the silk fiber and the wool fiber dyed with hematein and then investigated the effect of the cell membrane complex (CMC) on the K/S-wavelength (l) curve of the dyed wool fiber to clarify the origin of their difference. First we determined the dye uptake of the cortex cells dyed with hematein and found that the uptake of cortex cells was low apparently compared to that of the wool fiber, indicating that hematein adsorbed mainly to the CMC region of the wool fiber. Further, we examined the dyeing behavior of the wool fiber pretreated by ethylene diaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) with hematein and found that the K/S-l curve of the EDTA pretreated wool fiber is compatible with that of the dyed silk fiber. We assumed from these results that the difference on the color between the silk fiber and the wool fiber dyed with hematein can be ascribed in part to the complex between hematein and the trace metal ions included in the CMC regions.