Papers

61,005 results
|
Article Tier 2

Environmental impact and mitigation of micro(nano)plastics pollution using green catalytic tools and green analytical methods

Researchers reviewed the growing problem of microplastics and nanoplastics in the environment, then assessed enzyme-based strategies for breaking them down, finding that enzymes specifically targeting plastic polymer structures offer a promising, sustainable approach to degradation, especially when stabilized on nanomaterials to extend their activity.

2022 Green Analytical Chemistry 50 citations
Article Tier 2

A minireview on the bioremediative potential of microbial enzymes as solution to emerging microplastic pollution

This mini review explores the potential of microbial enzymes as a sustainable solution for degrading microplastics, discussing recent advances in identifying plastic-degrading enzymes and the challenges remaining for practical bioremediation applications.

2023 Frontiers in Microbiology 50 citations
Article Tier 2

Recent trends in microbial and enzymatic plastic degradation: a solution for plastic pollution predicaments

This review covers recent advances in using microorganisms and their enzymes to break down plastics including polyethylene, PVC, polystyrene, and PET, with techniques like protein engineering being used to boost enzyme efficiency. Microbial degradation offers a sustainable approach to reducing the persistent plastic pollution that generates the microplastics found throughout the environment and human body.

2024 Biotechnology for Sustainable Materials 64 citations
Article Tier 2

Role of Microbes in Microplastic Removal and Its Effect on Human Health

This review examines the role of microbes in microplastic removal from environmental matrices and food systems, covering both degradation pathways and the health implications of microplastic-microbiome interactions for humans and other organisms.

2025
Article Tier 2

Enzymes to make plastics disappear

This review article discusses the problem of plastic waste accumulating in the environment, including the formation of microplastics, and explores the potential of engineered enzymes to break down synthetic polymers as a biological solution to plastic pollution.

2024 C&EN Global Enterprise
Article Tier 2

Role of Various Microbes and Their Enzymatic Mechanisms for Biodegradation of Microplastics

This review examines the microbial enzymes and degradation mechanisms responsible for biodegrading microplastic polymers, covering bacterial, fungal, and algal systems that have evolved plastic-degrading capabilities over the past 150 years of plastic production. The authors survey the most promising enzymatic pathways and organisms for biotechnological application in microplastic remediation.

2024
Article Tier 2

Microbe-assisted Enzymatic Degradation of Microplastic

This review examines microbially assisted enzymatic degradation of microplastics as a promising bioremediation strategy, surveying the microorganisms and extracellular enzymes capable of cleaving plastic polymer chains. The authors assess current progress, limitations, and future prospects for applying this approach to reduce microplastic accumulation in terrestrial and aquatic environments.

2024
Article Tier 2

Microbial enzyme power: Breaking down microplastics for a cleaner planet

This review examines how microbial enzymes produced by bacteria, fungi, and algae can break down and degrade microplastic polymers. The study suggests that enzymatic biodegradation represents a promising and more sustainable alternative to conventional microplastic removal methods, though further research is needed to improve enzyme efficiency and scalability.

2026 Journal of Hazardous Materials Plastics
Article Tier 2

Microplastic biodegradation and environmental safety: From microbial mechanisms to engineered systems and circular bio-based implementation.

This research review summarizes what scientists know about using bacteria and enzymes to break down microplastics—tiny plastic particles smaller than 5mm that contaminate our water, soil, and air. While these biological approaches show promise for removing dangerous plastic pollution from the environment, the methods don't always work completely and may create new harmful byproducts. The findings matter because microplastics can enter our food chain and bodies, so we need safe and effective ways to remove them without creating new health risks.

2026 Ecotoxicology and environmental safety
Article Tier 2

Harnessing Microorganisms for Microplastic Degradation: A Sustainable Approach to Mitigating Environmental Pollution

This review surveys microorganisms—bacteria, fungi, and other taxa—capable of degrading microplastics, examining the enzymes, metabolic pathways, and environmental conditions involved, and assessing the practical potential of harnessing these organisms for bioremediation of plastic pollution.

2025 NIPES Journal of Science and Technology Research
Article Tier 2

Detection and degradation of microplastics in the environment: a review

This review covers methods for detecting and breaking down microplastics in the environment. Microplastics persist in ecosystems and pose potential risks to both human health and wildlife. The paper highlights the need for better tools and strategies to address this growing pollution problem.

2025 Environmental Science Advances 14 citations
Article Tier 2

A concept for the biotechnological minimizing of emerging plastics, micro- and nano-plastics pollutants from the environment: A review.

This review examined biotechnological strategies for remediating plastics, micro-, and nano-plastics from the environment, cataloguing microbial and enzymatic degradation approaches, discussing their mechanistic basis, and proposing an integrated biotechnology framework for minimizing plastic pollution across terrestrial and aquatic systems.

2023 Environmental research
Article Tier 2

Recent Application of Enzymes and Microbes in Bioremediation

This review covers recent advances in applying enzymes and microorganisms for bioremediation of environmental pollutants, including microplastics, with a focus on eco-friendly alternatives to conventional chemical or physical treatment methods. The authors highlight promising microbial and enzymatic strategies that reduce secondary pollution and offer cost-effective pathways for cleaning contaminated soil and water.

2024 African Journal of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Research
Article Tier 2

Biological Degradation of Plastics and Microplastics: A Recent Perspective on Associated Mechanisms and Influencing Factors

This review looks at how bacteria and their enzymes can break down different types of plastics and microplastics through biological processes. Understanding these natural degradation pathways is important because they could be harnessed to reduce the amount of persistent microplastic pollution that accumulates in the environment and eventually enters the human food chain.

2023 Microorganisms 320 citations
Article Tier 2

Impact of plastic pollution on ecosystems: a review of adverse effects and sustainable solutions

Researchers reviewed the adverse impacts of plastics and micro-nanoplastics on aquatic, marine, and terrestrial ecosystems, highlighting advances in biodegradable alternatives, plastic-degrading enzymes, and recycling innovations as potential pathways to reducing the ~400 million tons of plastic produced each year.

2025 Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 17 citations
Article Tier 2

Recent advances in microbial and enzymatic engineering for the biodegradation of micro- and nanoplastics

This review covers recent advances in using engineered enzymes and microbes to break down plastic pollution, including persistent plastics like polyethylene and polystyrene that are major sources of microplastics. Developing biological methods to degrade these materials matters for human health because microplastics have been linked to cancer risk and endocrine disruption, and reducing plastic pollution at the source could lower overall human exposure.

2024 RSC Advances 55 citations
Article Tier 2

A critical review of microplastics in aquatic ecosystems: Degradation mechanisms and removing strategies

This review summarizes methods for removing microplastics from water, including physical filtering, chemical treatments, and biological breakdown by bacteria, fungi, and enzymes. Effective removal of microplastics from water is important for human health because these tiny particles are eaten by fish and other seafood, eventually entering the human food chain.

2024 Environmental Science and Ecotechnology 81 citations
Article Tier 2

Microbial Degradation of Plastics

This review examines microbial degradation of plastics in the environment, discussing how environmental breakdown of plastics generates microplastic particles that accumulate in plants and animals and cause metabolic disruptions, while exploring the potential of microorganisms to break down plastic polymers.

2023 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic pollution: Understanding microbial degradation and strategies for pollutant reduction

This review explores how microplastics form, spread through ecosystems, and affect microbial communities, then examines how certain microorganisms can actually break down these plastic particles. Understanding microbial degradation of microplastics could lead to biotechnology solutions that reduce the amount of plastic pollution entering the food chain and ultimately the human body.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 150 citations
Article Tier 2

Microbial Biodegradation of Plastics and Microplastics: Enzymatic Mechanisms, Biotechnological Applications, and Ecotoxicological Perspectives

This review examined the enzymatic mechanisms by which microorganisms degrade plastics and microplastics, covering biotechnological applications and ecotoxicological perspectives. Researchers found that certain bacterial and fungal enzymes can break down persistent plastic polymers, positioning microbial biodegradation as a promising sustainable remediation approach, though scalability and environmental deployment remain challenges.

2025 Environmental Toxicology and Ecology 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Microbial plastic degradation: enzymes, pathways, challenges, and perspectives.

This review synthesizes current knowledge on microbial plastic degradation, covering the enzymes and metabolic pathways involved in breaking down major synthetic polymers, the challenges limiting efficient biodegradation, and perspectives for engineering improved microbial solutions to plastic waste.

2025 Microbiology and molecular biology reviews : MMBR
Article Tier 2

New-Age Bioremediation Strategies to Combat Microplastic Pollution in the Environment

This review discusses emerging bioremediation strategies for addressing microplastic pollution, focusing on the use of microorganisms and their enzymes to break down plastic polymers. Researchers highlight that enzymes such as lipases, esterases, and oxidases show potential for depolymerizing various microplastic types. The study acknowledges challenges around substrate specificity, environmental conditions, and scalability that must be overcome to make enzymatic bioremediation viable at larger scales.

2024 ACS symposium series 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Polymer Chemistry: A primer to enzymatic polymer degradation

This review primer covers how enzymes can be used to biodegrade polymers, with applications for chemical recycling of plastics and removal of microplastic debris from the environment. Enzymatic degradation offers a targeted, environmentally friendly approach to breaking down persistent plastic polymers at the source.

2023 Nachrichten aus der Chemie
Article Tier 2

Microbial Degradation and Valorization of Plastic Wastes

This review covers recent advances in microbial and enzymatic degradation of synthetic plastic wastes, summarizing the microorganisms and enzymes capable of attacking different polymer types and assessing the prospects for biological plastic waste treatment at scale.

2020 Frontiers in Microbiology 551 citations