Plastic-Eating Bacteria DiscoveredPlastic-Eating Bacteria Discovered
This discovery could pave the way for bioengineered solutions to tackle plastic waste cleanup.
Researchers have long observed that a common family of environmental bacteria, Comamonadacae, grow on plastics littered throughout urban rivers and wastewater systems. But what, exactly, these Comamonas bacteria are doing has remained a mystery.
Now, Northwestern University-led researchers have discovered how cells of a Comamonas bacterium are breaking down plastic for food. First, they chew the plastic into small pieces, called nanoplastics. Then, they secrete a specialized enzyme that breaks down the plastic even further. Finally, the bacteria use a ring of carbon atoms from the plastic as a food source, the researchers found.
That would be pretty cool... nature finding a solution before humans take action.
My favorite thing that nature has given us is that mealworms will eat styrofoam!
Nature has solution for everything. We just need to trust.
Well, I would not go as far as trust. Nature might have a solution that does not involve us as a species... I'd rather have my descendants still be part of nature in the future. But yeah, lots of tech gets its inspiration from nature. Think Biomimetics...
Thanks!
I mean humans creating propoganda for so many things instead of banning plastic factories.
This is quite an important paragraph too:
I suspect that the C. testosteroni like to eat the smallest pieces available. I wonder if they degrade things like plastic bags and the infamous plastic straws. Just eating the microplastics would be great by itself because there is so much of it.
First I thought you had made up a funny name for this bacteria, but turns out they are really called that way.
Seems the reason is that one of the compounds they are able to metabolize is testosterone, making it one of their prime carbon sources.
Testosterone is likely not involved in the chemical pathway to break down plastic.
Wow!!! I want them to stay away from me, then. As far away as possible, I have little enough testosterone as it is, nowadays.
This also highlights something that I have recently run across: some environmentalists are pushing back on cleaning up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. As confusing as it sounds there are unique ecosystems that have formed in this area and there is a concern of doing more damage to the environment trying to clean them up over leaving them be.
An idea gaining more momentum is to just try and prevent the plastic from entering the waterways with a focus on rivers since they are a huge source.
That's interesting. Do you have some references on this that I could read up on?
There is a pretty good Youtube video that triggered me looking into this more let me find it for you!
Here it is the comments start at the 2:25 point!
Just watched it. Great video... almost deserving of its own post ;)
I guessed correctly before she said it that it's the oil-producing countries that are against reduction of plastic production... They have the money to lobby hard, so that's gonna be a difficult fight.
It is a fascinating issue and one I have actually been working on... attempting to put together an advanced recycling R&D bill but it isn't something that would move this Congress and would be something for next year.
Wishing you the best in passing it...
Lol yeahhhhhh luckily the only part of it in my jurisdiction is the science behind it so R&D is easier to pass esp. when you add in things like agriculture feed stocks it gets the Republicans more behind it
Of course they would push back. It is what keeps them going. If you were to remediate these kinds of problems, they would have less to bellyache about. You would be taking their rice bowl away.
That is a valuable find, indeed. I just hope that the mad ScientistsTM don’t release C. testosteroni into the environment before they find a natural predator for it. We have had enough problems with “lab leaks” and purposeful leaks lately. I just hope they are more cautious this time.
Is this potential or real?
So it is a naturally occurring environmental bacteria. Yes people can get sick from it but we have meds for it. Given that C. testosterone is a Gram-negative bacteria I would bet Bdellovibrio would take care of it.
Since it is already out there I think if it was going to do something catastrophic it already would have.
Yes, in its natural state it looks to be relatively harmless, however, there are mad ScientistsTM that love to gene tinker with things. It looks like when they tinker, we (including all living creatures) die.
So it's one gram-negative bacteria taking care of another gram-negative bacteria? No need for antibiotics in such case?
Bdellovibrio was an example of a natural predator of the bacteria which Rothbardian was concerned about. For humans if this bacteria gets you sick more often than not your body is able to quickly take care of it but yeah if you are having issues with clearing it from your system there are medications including antibiotics for it
It looks like it is both real and natural. I just hope the gene tinkerers do not turn it into a monster beyond all proportions. After all, plastics ARE somewhat useful to us.
A fascinating discovery that could revolutionize the fight against plastic pollution.
Very cool
Life......finds a way, energy cannot be destroyed it can only be converted
Will start a clinic injecting these into testicles asap...
Plastic man did not survive
Funny!!
Knew for a long time that this would happen :-)
Thanks for sharing some good, natural news!