The researchers of the study said the discovery could help combat the world’s plastic problem
An accidental finding led to the creation of a mutant bacteria that breaks down plastic, the Guardian reports.
Researchers from Britain and the US stumbled on the discovery while working on a bug found outside a recycling plant in Japan that had naturally evolved to eat plastic.
The international team said it was originally tinkering with the bacteria learn more about how it developed, but happened to make it more efficient in breaking down PET (polyethylene terephthalate), the kind of plastic used in plastic drink bottles. According to the report, the bacteria creates enzymes when it comes into contact with the plastic that decompose the material. The enzymes can get through plastic in just days compared to the centuries it takes for the resistant PET to breakdown in landfills or oceans.
The researchers of the study said the discovery could help combat the world’s plastic problem. “What we are hoping to do is use this enzyme to turn this plastic back into its original components, so we can literally recycle it back to plastic,” said Dr. John McGeehan, who co-led the research. “It means we won’t need to dig up any more oil and, fundamentally, it should reduce the amount of plastic in the environment.”
More: Recycling 2.0: Scientists accidentally create mutant bacteria that dines on plastic | National Post
An accidental finding led to the creation of a mutant bacteria that breaks down plastic, the Guardian reports.
Researchers from Britain and the US stumbled on the discovery while working on a bug found outside a recycling plant in Japan that had naturally evolved to eat plastic.
The international team said it was originally tinkering with the bacteria learn more about how it developed, but happened to make it more efficient in breaking down PET (polyethylene terephthalate), the kind of plastic used in plastic drink bottles. According to the report, the bacteria creates enzymes when it comes into contact with the plastic that decompose the material. The enzymes can get through plastic in just days compared to the centuries it takes for the resistant PET to breakdown in landfills or oceans.
The researchers of the study said the discovery could help combat the world’s plastic problem. “What we are hoping to do is use this enzyme to turn this plastic back into its original components, so we can literally recycle it back to plastic,” said Dr. John McGeehan, who co-led the research. “It means we won’t need to dig up any more oil and, fundamentally, it should reduce the amount of plastic in the environment.”
More: Recycling 2.0: Scientists accidentally create mutant bacteria that dines on plastic | National Post
