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Back to the past—forever young: cutting-edge biochemical and microbiological tools for cultural heritage conservation

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Abstract

Ancient documents and milestones of human history such as manuscripts and textiles are fragile and during aging undergo chemical, physical, and biological deterioration. Among the different causes of damage, also human intervention plays a role since some restoration strategies proved to be transient and/or they generated further damage. Outdoor monuments undergo deterioration since they are exposed to pollution, weathering, microbial attack (giving rise to undesired pigmentation, discoloration or true dissolution, corrosion, and overall decay), as well as man-made damage (i.e., graffiti). This review article reports the best-fitting strategies used to restore wall paintings, outdoor monuments, textiles, and paper documents to their ancient beauty by employing “soft” biobased approaches such as viable bacteria or suitable enzymes.

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Funding

This work was financially supported by “Ricerca Locale-ex 60%” of the Turin University.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, Università of Turin, Via Accademia Albertina 13, 10123, Turin, Italy

    Roberto Mazzoli & Enrica Pessione

  2. CNR-ISPA, Largo P. Braccini 2, Grugliasco, 10095, Turin, Italy

    Maria Gabriella Giuffrida

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  1. Roberto Mazzoli
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  2. Maria Gabriella Giuffrida
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  3. Enrica Pessione
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Correspondence to Enrica Pessione.

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Mazzoli, R., Giuffrida, M. & Pessione, E. Back to the past—forever young: cutting-edge biochemical and microbiological tools for cultural heritage conservation. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 102, 6815–6825 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00253-018-9121-3

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