Biodegradation of Polystyrene by Pseudomonas sp. Isolated from the Gut of Superworms (Larvae of Zophobas atratus )

Recently, various attempts have been made to solve plastic waste problems, such as development of biodegradation without producing pollution. Polystyrene (PS) is the fifth most used plastic in many industries; therefore, degrading PS becomes a critical global issue. Here, we reported strain DSM 5007...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Environmental science & technology 2020-06, Vol.54 (11), p.6987-6996
Main Authors: Kim, Hong Rae, Lee, Hyun Min, Yu, Hee Cheol, Jeon, Eunbeen, Lee, Sukkyoo, Li, Jiaojie, Kim, Dae-Hwan
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biodegradation
Carbonyl compounds
Carbonyl groups
Carbonyls
Contact angle
Fourier transforms
Gene expression
Hydrolase
Hydrophobicity
Infrared spectroscopy
Larvae
NMR
Nuclear magnetic resonance
Oxidation
Photoelectron spectroscopy
Photoelectrons
Plastic debris
Polymerase chain reaction
Polystyrene
Polystyrene resins
Pseudomonas
Pseudomonas aeruginosa
Reverse transcription
Serine
Serine hydrolase
Spectrum analysis
Water drops
Water pollution
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Recently, various attempts have been made to solve plastic waste problems, such as development of biodegradation without producing pollution. Polystyrene (PS) is the fifth most used plastic in many industries; therefore, degrading PS becomes a critical global issue. Here, we reported strain DSM 50071, initially isolated from the gut of the superworms, and the PS degradation by sp. DSM 50071. We examined PS degradation using electronic microscopy and measured changes in atomic composition and contact angles with water droplets on the PS surface that represents a chemical change from hydrophobicity to hydrophilicity. We have further examined chemical structural changes using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Fourier-transform-infrared spectroscopy, and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) to confirm the formation of carbonyl groups (C═O) in the oxidation pathway during PS biodegradation. In reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis, the gene expression level of serine hydrolase (SH) in sp. DSM 50071 was highly increased during PS degradation, and the enzyme-mediated biodegradation of PS was further confirmed by the SH inhibitor treatment test. Thus, the significance of these findings goes beyond the discovery of a novel function of sp. DSM 50071 in the gut of superworms, highlighting a potential solution for PS biodegradation.
ISSN:0013-936X
1520-5851
DOI:10.1021/acs.est.0c01495