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Research Progress in Microbial Degradation of Plastics
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This review summarizes microbial degradation research across six major plastic types, examining biodegradation mechanisms, key microbial species, and enzyme pathways involved in breaking down synthetic polymers. The authors argue that microbial degradation represents an emerging, environmentally superior alternative to traditional incineration and landfill approaches for managing plastic waste.
Abstract With the development of society, plastic is widely used in people’s industrial production and daily life, playing an important role in all fields of the world economy. Plastic is notoriously resistant to degradation in natural environments, resulting in severe ‘white pollution’ from widespread accumulation. Particles smaller than 5 mm are recognized for their ecotoxicological impact, posing a significant risk to both human health and the ecosystem. Urgent action is required to address this pressing issue. Compared with the traditional field incineration, concentrated landfill, and recycling methods, microorganisms are becoming a kind of emerging resources for process recycling and plastic degradation, the article summarizes the microbial degradation research report in recent years, explores the current situation of the microbial degradation of plastics, first introduces the structure of the six big plastics, and then focus on the plastic biodegradation mechanism, summarizes the microorganisms of biodegradable plastics in different environment, provide a theoretical basis for further study of plastic microbial degradation, in order to effectively solve the problem of plastic pollution in the environment.
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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.