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Living in a bottle: Bacteria from sediment‐associated Mediterranean waste and potential growth on polyethylene terephthalate
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Researchers analyzed bacterial communities inhabiting Mediterranean seafloor sediments trapped inside PET bottles and aluminum cans, using SEM and next-generation sequencing to characterize plastisphere diversity, then screened culturable isolates for the ability to use PET as a carbon source. The study identified bacteria capable of PET degradation, highlighting the potential of ocean-derived plastisphere communities for plastic bioremediation.
Ocean pollution is a worldwide environmental challenge that could be partially tackled through microbial applications. To shed light on the diversity and applications of the bacterial communities that inhabit the sediments trapped in artificial containers, we analyzed residues (polyethylene terephthalate [PET] bottles and aluminum cans) collected from the Mediterranean Sea by scanning electron microscopy and next generation sequencing. Moreover, we set a collection of culturable bacteria from the plastisphere that were screened for their ability to use PET as a carbon source. Our results reveal that Proteobacteria are the predominant phylum in all the samples and that Rhodobacteraceae, Woeseia, Actinomarinales, or Vibrio are also abundant in these residues. Moreover, we identified marine isolates with enhanced growth in the presence of PET: Aquimarina intermedia, Citricoccus spp., and Micrococcus spp. Our results suggest that the marine environment is a source of biotechnologically promising bacterial isolates that may use PET or PET additives as carbon sources.
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Researchers performed a multi-omic analysis of bacterial communities colonizing PET plastic in marine environments, identifying microorganisms capable of degrading PET and characterizing the enzymatic pathways involved, advancing understanding of natural plastic biodegradation in ocean systems.
A marine bacterial community that degrades poly(ethylene terephthalate) and polyethylene
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Researchers discovered a marine bacterial community capable of colonizing and degrading both PET and polyethylene plastics, identified through screening hundreds of plastic waste samples. This multi-polymer degrading microbial consortium offers a promising avenue for biological plastic waste remediation.
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Researchers used metagenomics to identify microbial communities forming biofilms on polyethylene plastic in the ocean. The study found taxonomically diverse consortia that may contain organisms with polyethylene biodegradation potential, advancing understanding of the ocean plastisphere.
Shotgun Metagenomic insights into the Plastisphere microbiome: Unveiling potential for clinical and industrial enzymes production along with plastic degradation
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Researchers used shotgun metagenomic sequencing to analyze microbial communities (plastisphere) colonizing plastic debris in soil and aquatic environments, finding that 54% of bacteria had plastic-degrading potential and that the plastisphere also harbored clinically relevant and industrially useful enzymes. The findings suggest the plastisphere is a reservoir of both plastic-degrading and biotechnologically valuable microorganisms.
New insights into the functioning and structure of the PE and PP plastispheres from the Mediterranean Sea
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Researchers used metagenomics and metaproteomics to characterize the plastisphere — the microbial community colonizing marine plastic debris — on polyethylene and polypropylene fragments from the Mediterranean Sea, confirming it functions as a self-sufficient ecosystem while finding no evidence that hydrocarbon-degrading or pathogenic bacteria were actively breaking down the polymer or causing disease.
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When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.