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Biodegradation of microplastics: Better late than never
Summary
This review covers biological methods for breaking down microplastics, including using bacteria, fungi, and enzymes to degrade common plastic types like polyethylene, polypropylene, and PVC. While some microorganisms can partially break down these plastics, the process is slow and not yet effective enough for large-scale cleanup. The research shows promise for future solutions but highlights that biodegradation alone cannot yet address the scale of microplastic pollution threatening ecosystems and human health.
Plastics use is growing due to its applications in the economy, human health and aesthetics. The major plastic particles in the form of microplastics (MPs) released into the environment are made up of polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), polyvinylchloride (PVC), and polyethylene terephthalate (PET). Tremendous usage and continuous accumulation of MPs in the environment pose a global threat to ecosystems and human health. The current knowledge of biotechnological, aerobic and aerobic biodegradation approaches emphasizes the microbial culture's potential towards MPs removal. This review selectively provides recent biotechnological advances such as biostimulation, bioaugmentation and enzymatic biodegradation that can be applied for MPs removal by biodegradation and bioaccumulation. This review summarizes the knowledge and the research exploration on the biodegradation of synthetic organic MPs with different biodegradability. However, further research is still needed to understand the underlying mechanism of MPs biodegradation in soil and water systems, leading to the development of an effective method for MPs removal.