Viral Portal News: Bacteria

Strain of bacteria that eat plastics discovered

Unknown 9:08 PM Bacteria , Discovered , plastics , Strain

<ul><li style="text-align: justify;">A type of bacteria that eat plastics is discovered by scientists in Japan</li> <li style="text-align: justify;">The bacteria is called Ideonella sakaiensis</li> <li style="text-align: justify;">Ideonella sakaiensis eats the most common type of plastic known as PET</li> </ul>A team of Japanese scientists has discovered a strain of bacteria that eats plastics. The scientists, led by Dr. Shosuke Yoshida from the Kyoto Institute of Technology, said the bacteria devours the most common type of plastic known as PET (Polyethylene Terephthalate), which is commonly used to package bottled drinks, cosmetics and household cleaners. PET is also found in polyester clothing, frozen-dinner trays and blister packaging. According to Dr. Yoshida, the bacteria, called Ideonella sakaiensis, clings to plastic and uses enzymes to break down the plastic into two harmless substances – terephthalic acid and ethylene glycol. They then digest these two substances. The Japanese scientists are excited over the discovery, as this could be an answer to the growing problem of toxic plastic waste clogging the environment. The team is now finding ways to develop potential applications of the discovery. “We have shared the possibility of biological recycling of plastic. We want to develop this discovery into the application. This is the very first step,” Dr. Yoshida said. The World Economic Forum, in its report based on analysis of several studies and interviews with nearly 200 experts, only 14% of the 311 million tons of plastics produced is collected for recycling. The report said by 2050, there will be more plastics than fish in the world’s oceans. One possible application for the PET-eating bacteria, Yoshida said, would be to spray them into the heaps of plastic wastes building up in the oceans; much like the same way oil spills are cleaned. However, right now, the bacteria are inefficient. They take six weeks to disintegrate a thumb-nail size of PET plastic. The reason, according to the researchers, is that they multiply relatively slow. The scientists are thinking of the possibility that the bacteria could be genetically engineered to make them multiply faster. The study of Dr. Yoshida’s team was published on Friday, March 11, in the journal <a href="http://science.sciencemag.org/content/351/6278/1196">Science</a>. <a href="http://kickerdaily.com/strain-of-bacteria-that-eat-plastic-discovered/" rel="nofollow">Kicker Daily News</a>

A type of bacteria that eat plastics is discovered by scientists in Japan The bacteria is called Ideonella sakaiensis Ideonella sakaiensis ...