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Fungal Cutinase-Like Hydrolases As Prospective PET-Degrading Enzymes: An In Silico Analysis
Summary
Scientists used computer modeling to show that certain fungal enzymes have a similar shape and chemical "toolkit" as bacteria already known to break down plastic bottles (PET plastic). This matters because plastic waste breaks down into microplastics that are showing up in our food, water, and even our bodies—so finding more natural ways to break down this plastic could eventually help reduce our exposure to it. Note that this is an early-stage computer analysis, not a lab test, so real-world proof that these fungal enzymes actually degrade plastic still needs to be confirmed through experiments.
The accumulation of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) waste and microplastics generated from the waste has increased alarmingly, and mandates the need for sustainable biodegradation strategies. The bacterial PETase enzyme from Ideonella sakaiensis has been studied exclusively for PET biodegradation, along with similar enzymes from other bacterial sources; however, fungal polyester-degrading hydrolases remain underexplored. Therefore, this study investigated the structural and functional similarity between Ideonella sakaiensis PETase and fungal cutinase-like hydrolases employing computational bioinformatics approaches. A fungal hydrolase sequence obtained from UniProtKB was analyzed using BLASTp, multiple sequence alignment, phylogenetic analysis, and structural comparison tools. Conserved catalytic motifs and Ser–His–Asp/Glu catalytic triads were identified among bacterial PETase and fungal enzymes. Functional domain analysis through InterPro Scan confirmed the presence of conserved α/β hydrolase domains. Furthermore, Structural superimposition using UCSF ChimeraX revealed conservation of the core α/β hydrolase architecture with a low RMSD value despite divergence in loop regions. The findings suggest that fungal cutinase-like hydrolases possess PETase-associated structural and catalytic characteristics and may play a vital role in future PET biodegradation and microplastic remediation strategies.