Researchers have ways of manipulating bacteria to produce enzymes that can break down plastic, a possible solution to a growing crisis.
, bringing us ever closer to a future in which tiny microorganisms are capable of helping us tackle a growing environmental crisis.Fast forward over two decades, and researchers have found several ways of manipulating similar bacteria to produce enzymes that can break down plastic at a faster rate.
And that's important, considering the massive scale of the issue. To make a meaningful impact on a global scale, these enzymes need to work fast and thrive in a wide range of conditions. But finding high-performing, plastic-eating organisms that are up to the task remains difficult. The alternative, which scientists have also been working on for years, is to"This is something we constantly struggle with," Gregg Beckham, the head of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Colorado, told.
Despite their best efforts, a plastic-eating microbe hungry enough to make a meaningful impact on our environmental crisis remains as elusive as ever. The sheer number of different plastics littering our landfills only complicates matters. The research has also suffered from being underfunded due to low interest and high costs. After all, the immediate market incentives simply aren't there."There is a return on investment to recycle plastic," Victor di Lorenzo, a scientist at the Spanish National Biotechnology Center in Madrid, told. "But who will pay for these larger-scale projects that would help wider society? This is something only public support would remedy.
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