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Howard SA, Carr CM, Sbahtu HI, Onwukwe U, López MJ, Dobson ADW, McCarthy RR. Enrichment of native plastic-associated biofilm communities to enhance polyester degrading activity. Environ Microbiol 2023; 25:2698-2718. [PMID: 37515381 PMCID: PMC10947123 DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.16466] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2022] [Accepted: 06/30/2023] [Indexed: 07/30/2023]
Abstract
Plastic pollution is an increasing worldwide problem urgently requiring a solution. While recycling rates are increasing globally, only 9% of all plastic waste has been recycled, and with the cost and limited downstream uses of recycled plastic, an alternative is needed. Here, we found that expanded polystyrene (EPS) promoted high levels of bacterial biofilm formation and sought out environmental EPS waste to characterize these native communities. We demonstrated that the EPS attached communities had limited plastic degrading activity. We then performed a long-term enrichment experiment where we placed a robust selection pressure on these communities by limiting carbon availability such that the waste plastic was the only carbon source. Seven of the resulting enriched bacterial communities had increased plastic degrading activity compared to the starting bacterial communities. Pseudomonas stutzeri was predominantly identified in six of the seven enriched communities as the strongest polyester degrader. Sequencing of one isolate of P. stutzeri revealed two putative polyesterases and one putative MHETase. This indicates that waste plastic-associated biofilms are a source for bacteria that have plastic-degrading potential, and that this potential can be unlocked through selective pressure and further in vitro enrichment experiments, resulting in biodegradative communities that are better than nature.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sophie A. Howard
- Centre for Inflammation Research and Translational Medicine, Division of Biosciences, Department of Life Sciences, College of Health and Life SciencesBrunel University LondonUxbridgeUK
| | - Clodagh M. Carr
- School of MicrobiologyUniversity College CorkCorkIreland
- SSPC‐SFI Research Centre for PharmaceuticalsUniversity College CorkCorkIreland
| | - Habteab Isaack Sbahtu
- Centre for Inflammation Research and Translational Medicine, Division of Biosciences, Department of Life Sciences, College of Health and Life SciencesBrunel University LondonUxbridgeUK
| | - Uchechukwu Onwukwe
- Experimental Techniques Centre, College of Engineering, Design and Physical SciencesBrunel University LondonUxbridgeUK
| | - Maria J. López
- Department of Biology and Geology, CITE II‐BUniversity of Almería, Agrifood Campus of International Excellence ceiA3, CIAIMBITALAlmeriaSpain
| | - Alan D. W. Dobson
- School of MicrobiologyUniversity College CorkCorkIreland
- SSPC‐SFI Research Centre for PharmaceuticalsUniversity College CorkCorkIreland
| | - Ronan R. McCarthy
- Centre for Inflammation Research and Translational Medicine, Division of Biosciences, Department of Life Sciences, College of Health and Life SciencesBrunel University LondonUxbridgeUK
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Oliveira J, Almeida PL, Sobral RG, Lourenço ND, Gaudêncio SP. Marine-Derived Actinomycetes: Biodegradation of Plastics and Formation of PHA Bioplastics-A Circular Bioeconomy Approach. Mar Drugs 2022; 20:md20120760. [PMID: 36547907 PMCID: PMC9783806 DOI: 10.3390/md20120760] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2022] [Revised: 11/22/2022] [Accepted: 11/28/2022] [Indexed: 12/05/2022] Open
Abstract
Plastics are present in the majority of daily-use products worldwide. Due to society's production and consumption patterns, plastics are accumulating in the environment, causing global pollution issues and intergenerational impacts. Our work aims to contribute to the development of solutions and sustainable methods to mitigate this pressing problem, focusing on the ability of marine-derived actinomycetes to accelerate plastics biodegradation and produce polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs), which are biodegradable bioplastics. The thin plastic films' biodegradation was monitored by weight loss, changes in the surface chemical structure (Infra-Red spectroscopy FTIR-ATR), and by mechanical properties (tensile strength tests). Thirty-six marine-derived actinomycete strains were screened for their plastic biodegradability potential. Among these, Streptomyces gougerotti, Micromonospora matsumotoense, and Nocardiopsis prasina revealed ability to degrade plastic films-low-density polyethylene (LDPE), polystyrene (PS) and polylactic acid (PLA) in varying conditions, namely upon the addition of yeast extract to the culture media and the use of UV pre-treated thin plastic films. Enhanced biodegradation by these bacteria was observed in both cases. S. gougerotti degraded 0.56% of LDPE films treated with UV radiation and 0.67% of PS films when inoculated with yeast extract. Additionally, N. prasina degraded 1.27% of PLA films when these were treated with UV radiation, and yeast extract was added to the culture medium. The main and most frequent differences observed in FTIR-ATR spectra during biodegradation occurred at 1740 cm-1, indicating the formation of carbonyl groups and an increase in the intensity of the bands, which indicates oxidation. Young Modulus decreased by 30% on average. In addition, S. gougerotti and M. matsumotoense, besides biodegrading conventional plastics (LDPE and PS), were also able to use these as a carbon source to produce degradable PHA bioplastics in a circular economy concept.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juliana Oliveira
- Associate Laboratory i4HB, Institute for Health and Bioeconomy, NOVA School of Science and Technology, NOVA University Lisbon, 2819-516 Caparica, Portugal
- UCIBIO-Applied Molecular Biosciences Unit, Chemistry and Life Science Departments, NOVA School of Science and Technology, NOVA University Lisbon, 2819-516 Caparica, Portugal
| | - Pedro L. Almeida
- I3N-CENIMAT, Materials Science Department, School of Science and Technology, NOVA University Lisbon, 2819-516 Caparica, Portugal
- Physics Department, Instituto Superior de Engenharia de Lisboa, Instituto Politécnico de Lisboa, 1959-007 Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Rita G. Sobral
- Associate Laboratory i4HB, Institute for Health and Bioeconomy, NOVA School of Science and Technology, NOVA University Lisbon, 2819-516 Caparica, Portugal
- UCIBIO-Applied Molecular Biosciences Unit, Chemistry and Life Science Departments, NOVA School of Science and Technology, NOVA University Lisbon, 2819-516 Caparica, Portugal
| | - Nídia D. Lourenço
- Associate Laboratory i4HB, Institute for Health and Bioeconomy, NOVA School of Science and Technology, NOVA University Lisbon, 2819-516 Caparica, Portugal
- UCIBIO-Applied Molecular Biosciences Unit, Chemistry and Life Science Departments, NOVA School of Science and Technology, NOVA University Lisbon, 2819-516 Caparica, Portugal
| | - Susana P. Gaudêncio
- Associate Laboratory i4HB, Institute for Health and Bioeconomy, NOVA School of Science and Technology, NOVA University Lisbon, 2819-516 Caparica, Portugal
- UCIBIO-Applied Molecular Biosciences Unit, Chemistry and Life Science Departments, NOVA School of Science and Technology, NOVA University Lisbon, 2819-516 Caparica, Portugal
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +351-21-2948300; Fax: +351-21-2948550
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Singh Jadaun J, Bansal S, Sonthalia A, Rai AK, Singh SP. Biodegradation of plastics for sustainable environment. BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY 2022; 347:126697. [PMID: 35026422 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2022.126697] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2021] [Revised: 12/31/2021] [Accepted: 01/06/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Plastics are a kind of utility product that has become part and parcel of one's life. Their continuous usage, accumulation, and contamination of soil and water pose a severe threat to the biotic and abiotic components of the environment. It not only increases the carbon footprints but also contributes to global warming. This calls for an urgent need to develop novel strategies for the efficient degradation of plastics. The microbial strains equipped with the potential of degrading plastic materials, which can further be converted into usable products, are blessings for the ecosystem. This review comprehensively summarizes the microbial technologies to degrade different plastic types, such as polyethylene (PE), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polystyrene (PS), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polypropylene (PP), and polyurethane (PU). The study also describes the utilization of degraded plastic material as feedstock for its conversion into high-value chemicals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jyoti Singh Jadaun
- Department of Botany, Dayanand Girls Postgraduate College, Kanpur 208001, Uttar Pradesh, India
| | - Shilpi Bansal
- ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, Pusa, New Delhi 10012, India
| | - Ankit Sonthalia
- SRM Institute of Science and Technology, NCR Campus, Modi Nagar- 201204, Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, India
| | - Amit K Rai
- Institute of Bioresources and Sustainable Development, Regional Centre, Tadong, Sikkim, India
| | - Sudhir P Singh
- Center of Innovative and Applied Bioprocessing, SAS Nagar, Mohali-140306, Punjab, India.
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Mohanan N, Montazer Z, Sharma PK, Levin DB. Microbial and Enzymatic Degradation of Synthetic Plastics. Front Microbiol 2020; 11:580709. [PMID: 33324366 PMCID: PMC7726165 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2020.580709] [Citation(s) in RCA: 233] [Impact Index Per Article: 58.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2020] [Accepted: 10/20/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Synthetic plastics are pivotal in our current lifestyle and therefore, its accumulation is a major concern for environment and human health. Petroleum-derived (petro-)polymers such as polyethylene (PE), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyurethane (PU), polystyrene (PS), polypropylene (PP), and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) are extremely recalcitrant to natural biodegradation pathways. Some microorganisms with the ability to degrade petro-polymers under in vitro conditions have been isolated and characterized. In some cases, the enzymes expressed by these microbes have been cloned and sequenced. The rate of polymer biodegradation depends on several factors including chemical structures, molecular weights, and degrees of crystallinity. Polymers are large molecules having both regular crystals (crystalline region) and irregular groups (amorphous region), where the latter provides polymers with flexibility. Highly crystalline polymers like polyethylene (95%), are rigid with a low capacity to resist impacts. PET-based plastics possess a high degree of crystallinity (30-50%), which is one of the principal reasons for their low rate of microbial degradation, which is projected to take more than 50 years for complete degraded in the natural environment, and hundreds of years if discarded into the oceans, due to their lower temperature and oxygen availability. The enzymatic degradation occurs in two stages: adsorption of enzymes on the polymer surface, followed by hydro-peroxidation/hydrolysis of the bonds. The sources of plastic-degrading enzymes can be found in microorganisms from various environments as well as digestive intestine of some invertebrates. Microbial and enzymatic degradation of waste petro-plastics is a promising strategy for depolymerization of waste petro-plastics into polymer monomers for recycling, or to covert waste plastics into higher value bioproducts, such as biodegradable polymers via mineralization. The objective of this review is to outline the advances made in the microbial degradation of synthetic plastics and, overview the enzymes involved in biodegradation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nisha Mohanan
- Department of Biosystems Engineering, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada
| | - Zahra Montazer
- Faculty of Food Engineering, The Educational Complex of Agriculture and Animal Science, Torbat-e-jam, Iran
| | - Parveen K. Sharma
- Department of Biosystems Engineering, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada
| | - David B. Levin
- Department of Biosystems Engineering, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada
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Ho BT, Roberts TK, Lucas S. An overview on biodegradation of polystyrene and modified polystyrene: the microbial approach. Crit Rev Biotechnol 2017; 38:308-320. [DOI: 10.1080/07388551.2017.1355293] [Citation(s) in RCA: 106] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Ba Thanh Ho
- Faculty of Environment and Natural Resources, Nong Lam University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
| | - Timothy K. Roberts
- The Tom Farrell Institute for The Environment, University of Newcastle, Newcastle, NSW, Australia
| | - Steven Lucas
- The Tom Farrell Institute for The Environment, University of Newcastle, Newcastle, NSW, Australia
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