Papers

61,005 results
|
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
Article Tier 2

[Preface to the special issue: biotechnology of plastic waste degradation and valorization].

This preface introduces a special issue on biotechnology approaches to plastic waste degradation and valorization, covering microbial and enzymatic strategies for breaking down synthetic plastics. Biological plastic degradation could help reduce the environmental persistence of plastics that eventually fragment into microplastics.

2023 PubMed
Article Tier 2

Degradation and Recycling of Polymer Materials

This review synthesizes research on the degradation and recycling of polymer materials, covering microplastic formation, recycling strategies, and plastic degradation mechanisms as responses to the significant environmental damage caused by discarded plastics in ocean and other ecosystems.

2025
Article Tier 2

Emerging Technologies for Converting Mixed Plastic Waste into Biodegradable Polymers

Scientists are developing new ways to turn mixed plastic waste (like food containers and shopping bags) into biodegradable materials that naturally break down instead of polluting the environment. This research review summarizes promising techniques that could help reduce the microplastics that end up in our food and water. If these methods can be made affordable and used widely, they could significantly cut plastic pollution and the health risks it poses to humans.

2026 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Innovative Approaches to Microplastic and Nano-plastic Biodegradation

This review covers innovative biotechnological approaches to microplastic and nanoplastic biodegradation, examining the origins of these particles from larger plastic waste and intentionally manufactured microbeads. The authors assess promising biological and enzymatic strategies for accelerating breakdown of persistent plastic polymers in environmental and engineered systems.

2024 Egyptian Journal of Botany
Article Tier 2

Characteristic Features of Plastic Microbial Degradation

This book chapter reviews the characteristics of microbial plastic degradation, covering the enzymes, metabolic pathways, and environmental conditions that affect breakdown rates for different polymer types. Understanding microbial degradation mechanisms is foundational to developing biological solutions for microplastic pollution.

2023 BENTHAM SCIENCE PUBLISHERS eBooks 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Role of Novel Biological Agents in Plastic Degradation and Mitigation Approach towards Bioplastics

This review examines the role of novel biological agents — including bacteria, fungi, and engineered microorganisms — in degrading synthetic plastics and proposes bioplastics as a mitigation strategy to reduce persistent polymer accumulation in the environment. The authors outline the enzymatic mechanisms involved in breaking down major plastic types and discuss the potential of combining biological degradation with bioplastic adoption.

2025 THE ASIAN BULLETIN OF GREEN MANAGEMENT AND CIRCULAR ECONOMY
Article Tier 2

Novel Acumens into Biodegradation: Impact of Nanomaterials and Their Contribution

This review examines how nanomaterials can enhance the biodegradation of pollutants, including plastics, in the environment. Nanomaterial-assisted biodegradation offers a potential strategy for accelerating the breakdown of plastic waste before it fragments into microplastics.

2021 IntechOpen eBooks 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Emerging Frontiers in Environmental Biotechnology

This chapter examines how biotechnology can address microplastic pollution generated by industrialization, reviewing bio-based degradation pathways, nanobiotechnology applications, and the role of engineered organisms in reducing plastic use and waste. The authors assess the future potential of environmental biotechnology as a sustainable tool for managing hazardous microplastic contamination across industries.

2024
Article Tier 2

Enzyme‐Catalyzed Biodegradation of Micro‐ and Nanoplastics

This chapter examines enzyme-catalyzed biodegradation of micro- and nanoplastics, detailing the mechanisms by which various enzymes break down synthetic polymers and comparing the advantages of enzymatic approaches over conventional plastic disposal methods.

2024
Article Tier 2

Polymer Biodegradability 2.0: A Holistic View on Polymer Biodegradation in Natural and Engineered Environments

Researchers reviewed the science of biodegradable plastics, examining how material properties and environmental conditions — such as temperature, moisture, and microbial activity — determine how quickly and completely a polymer breaks down. The chapter provides guidance for developing, testing, and regulating biodegradable alternatives to conventional plastics that persist in the environment.

2023 Advances in polymer science 13 citations
Article Tier 2

Biodegradation of Plastic Waste: Environmental Implications and Remediation Approaches

This review examined physical, chemical, and biological degradation mechanisms of microplastics in the environment, including photodegradation, hydrolysis, and microbial breakdown. The authors discussed how degradation generates secondary microplastics and toxic by-products, and reviewed emerging mitigation strategies including advanced oxidation and enzymatic degradation.

2025 International Journal of Scientific Research in Science Engineering and Technology
Article Tier 2

Microbial biotechnology addressing the plastic waste disaster

This review covers how microbial biotechnology can help address plastic pollution, from engineering microorganisms to degrade plastics to developing biodegradable alternatives. Biological approaches to plastic management could help reduce the global accumulation of microplastics.

2017 Microbial Biotechnology 89 citations
Article Tier 2

Recent advances and challenges in sustainable management of plastic waste using biodegradation approach

This review provides a comprehensive overview of plastic biodegradation as a sustainable strategy for managing plastic waste accumulation. Researchers surveyed recent breakthroughs in identifying microorganisms and enzymes capable of breaking down various plastic polymers under relatively mild conditions. The study highlights that while biodegradation shows promise as an eco-friendly alternative to conventional waste management, significant challenges remain in scaling these approaches for practical application.

2023 Bioresource Technology 90 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

Introduction, Past and Present Scenarios of Plastic Degradation

This review traces the history and current state of plastic degradation research, covering how plastics break down in the environment and what technologies exist to accelerate or improve degradation. The persistence of plastic in the environment is what drives the ongoing accumulation of microplastics globally.

2021 Materials research foundations 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Challenges and opportunities in bioremediation of micro-nano plastics: A review.

This review examines biological approaches to removing micro- and nanoplastics from the environment, focusing on microbial degradation and bioremediation strategies. While bioremediation holds promise, challenges remain in identifying microbes capable of degrading common plastic types and scaling these processes for practical environmental cleanup.

2022 The Science of the total environment
Article Tier 2

Biodegradation of Wasted Bioplastics

This paper provides a broad overview of bioplastics — materials made from renewable biological sources — discussing their potential as a partial solution to global plastic pollution and the complexity of their biodegradability. While microplastic accumulation in oceans is mentioned as context for the urgency of the problem, the paper's focus is on bioplastic production and biodegradation rather than microplastic health or environmental impacts.

2023 World Science 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Emerging Technologies for Converting Mixed Plastic Waste into Biodegradable Polymers

Scientists are developing new ways to turn mixed plastic waste (like food containers and shopping bags all jumbled together) into materials that naturally break down in the environment, instead of lasting forever like regular plastic. This research review shows these emerging technologies could help solve our plastic pollution problem by preventing more microplastics from forming and contaminating our food and water. If these methods can be scaled up, they could transform how we handle plastic waste and reduce health risks from tiny plastic particles that are increasingly found in our bodies.

2026 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Plastic waste impact and biotechnology: Exploring polymer degradation, microbial role, and sustainable development implications

Researchers reviewed how microorganisms and their enzymes can break down different types of plastic waste through both aerobic (oxygen-using) and anaerobic (oxygen-free) pathways. The review highlights biotechnological tools like genetic modification that could accelerate plastic biodegradation, supporting a shift toward a circular economy.

2023 Bioresource Technology Reports 86 citations
Article Tier 2

Impact of Plastic Pollution on the Environment and Application of Multidimensional Degradation Technology

This review examines plastic pollution from production through environmental fate, describing how the durability that makes plastics commercially valuable also drives global contamination, and surveys multidimensional degradation technologies including photodegradation, biodegradation, and combined strategies for managing plastic waste. The authors assess both current industry practices and emerging approaches for reducing plastic accumulation.

2024 Environment and Climate Protection
Article Tier 2

Biodegradation of Microplastic: A Sustainable Approach

This review examines biological approaches to microplastic degradation, covering microorganisms and enzymes capable of breaking down common plastic polymers such as PET and polyethylene. Biodegradation could offer a sustainable path to reducing microplastic accumulation in soil, water, and marine environments.

2023 International Journal of Current Microbiology and Applied Sciences
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

Toward Microbial Recycling and Upcycling of Plastics: Prospects and Challenges

This review examines the prospects and challenges of using microorganisms to recycle and upcycle plastic waste, assessing the current state of microbial degradation research across major polymer types. The authors identify metabolic engineering and synthetic biology as key tools needed to make biological plastic recycling economically viable at scale.

2022 Frontiers in Microbiology 59 citations