All Plastic degradation articles
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FeaturesHow microbes can detoxify heavy metal pollution in the ocean
Researchers have successfully used microbes to reduce the heavy metal toxicity of soils and wastewater through bioremediation. Could they eventually use a similar approach to target heavy metals in the ocean?
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NewsResearch reveals hidden risks from plastic-coated fertilizers in soil
A study focuses on the microplastic pollution generated by polymer-coated, control-release fertilizers, highlighting the need for biodegradable alternatives.
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OpinionThe problem of microplastics in the oceans: it’s time for effective solutions
Francielly Bruna Neto Francisco and Ricardo Henrique Krüger, from the University of Brasília (UNB), warn that we urgently need technologies that will effectively eliminate partially or nonbiodegradable polymers from the marine environment.
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NewsMarine fungi that degrade plastic can train to do it faster
Researchers recently discovered that many species of fungi isolated from Hawai‘i’s nearshore environment have the ability to degrade plastic and some can be conditioned to do it faster.
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NewsA new process with zero emissions for truly biodegradable plastics
A new approach to producing biodegradable plastics - polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) - was discovered as a promising alternative that requires minimal organic materials and is naturally produced by photosynthetic microorganisms.
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NewsA novel approach to mapping and engineering enzymes for enhanced plastic recycling
Researchers have successfully engineered PETases, enzymes that are capable to depolymerize commercial plastic - polyethylene terephthalate (PET), through the innovative landscape profiling of enzymes’ genetic sequences and subsequently engineered them.
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CareersThe Space Microbiology Group
The Space Microbiology Group studies how microorganisms behave in space conditions, using tools such as microbiology, molecular biology, system biology and geomicrobiology to learn how new biotechnologies could be applied to space.
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NewsNanoplastics can impair the effect of antibiotics
Researchers investigating how some of the most common nanoplastics interact with tetracycline found significant accumulation of the antibiotics on the surfaces of the nanoplastic particles.
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NewsPathogens that cling to microplastics may survive wastewater treatment
Wastewater treatment fails to kill several human pathogens when they hide out on microplastics in the water, reports a new study.
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NewsPlastic mulch is contaminating agricultural fields
Using plastic sheets for weed control, even under current best management practices, pollutes soil with macro- and micro-plastics and negatively affect critical soil functions, according to a study.
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NewsMangrove microbes to munch on plastic
A strategy to select mangrove bacteria that can transform plastic could offer a new tool for plastic waste cleanup, according to a study from the lab of Dr Alexandre Rosado, a member of AMI’s Ocean Sustainability Advisory Group.
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NewsWood-degrading fungal enzymes reprogrammed to biorecycle plastic
Lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases secreted by filamentous fungi break down the surface of cellulose to weaken it and make complete degradation easier, making them perfect candidates for engineering into chimera enzymes for plastic degradation.
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NewsPlastic-eating enzyme identified in wastewater microbes
Plastic pollution is everywhere, and a good amount of it is composed of polyethylene terephthalate (PET, ♳). This polymer is used to make bottles, containers and even clothing. Now, researchers report in ACS’s Environmental Science & Technology that they have discovered an enzyme that breaks apart PET ...
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NewsWastewater bacteria can break down plastic for food
Researchers have discovered how cells of a Comamonas bacterium break down plastic for food. First, they chew the plastic into small pieces, then secrete an enzyme that breaks down the plastic further, and finally use a ring of carbon atoms as a food source.
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NewsGrazing zooplankton severely impacted by nanoplastic particles - but cyanobacteria unaffected
Researchers who studied how nanoplastic affects aquatic organisms in lakes and rivers found that some species are being wiped out, while others – such as cyanobacteria that contribute to algal blooms – are completely unaffected.
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NewsSLEEVER® and CARBIOS globally launch world’s first Home Compost biodegradable tamper evident seal
SLEEVER®, and CARBIOS have unveiled the first innovation to emerge from their partnership: SEELCAP® ONEGO, the world’s first Home Compost biodegradable tamper evident seal which integrates the encapsulated enzyme CARBIOS Active.
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NewsMicroplastics found in all three parts of coral anatomy
Researchers have found that all three parts of the coral anatomy—surface mucus, tissue, and skeleton—contain microplastics. They used a new microplastic detection technique which they applied to coral for the first time.
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FeaturesWhat a waste: poop and plastic in the study of purple martin microbiomes
Sometimes questions on conservation in research can take multiple forms.
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NewsEnzyme-embedded PLA plastic can degrade in home-compost or methanization conditions.
A new enzyme-embedded material is proven to fully distintegrate and biodegrade at a much faster rate than the 26-week home-compost certification requirement and is shown to help produce more biomethane, another source of waste recovery.
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NewsResearchers use microbes to create biodegradable bioplastics from food waste
Researchers are developing biodegradable bioplastics from food waste to give those materials a new – and useful – life.