Ideonella

Ideonella
Scientific classification
Domain: Bacteria
Phylum: Proteobacteria
Class: Betaproteobacteria
Order: Burkholderiales
Family: Comamonadaceae
Genus: Ideonella
Malmqvist et al. 1994, gen. nov.[1]
Type species
Ideonella dechloratans[1]
Species

Ideonella is a genus of Comamonadaceae bacteria.[2]

Applications

Ideonella sakaiensis

In 2016 I. sakaiensis was shown to degrade PET, a polymer widely used in food containers, bottles and synthetic fibers. Adhered to a low-grade PET film, the bacteria used two novel enzymes to decompose the plastic into two environmentally benign substances, which served as their main food source.[3]

A colony of I. sakaiensis could completely degrade a low-grade plastic water bottle in six weeks. Higher-grade PET products would require heating and cooling to weaken it before bacteria could start eating.[3]

The bacteria could also be used to reduce industrial waste during plastics manufacturing.[3]

References

  1. 1 2 A.C. Parte. "Ideonella". Retrieved 1 March 2016.
  2. ↑ "Ideonella". Retrieved 1 March 2016.
  3. 1 2 3 Long, Kat (March 10, 2016). "New Species of Bacteria Eats Plastic". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2016-03-11.


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.