Polyester

Bacteria

Degradation (telecommunications)

Biology

Computer science

Depolymerization

Polyethylene

Crystallinity

Engineering

Polypropylene

Composite material

Microbial biodegradation

Chemical engineering

Polymer

Genetics

Telecommunications

Organic chemistry

Microorganism

Chemistry

Materials science

Polymer degradation

Biodegradation

Polyethylene terephthalate

Frontiers in Microbiology

Synthetic plastics are pivotal in our current lifestyle and therefore, its accumulation is a major concern for environment and human health. Petroleum-derived (petro-)polymers such as polyethylene (PE), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyurethane (PU), polystyrene (PS), polypropylene (PP), and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) are extremely recalcitrant to natural biodegradation pathways. Some microorganisms with the ability to degrade petro-polymers under in vitro conditions have been isolated and characterized. In some cases, the enzymes expressed by these microbes have been cloned and sequenced. The rate of polymer biodegradation depends on several factors including chemical structures, molecular weights, and degrees of crystallinity. Polymers are large molecules having both regular crystals (crystalline region) and irregular groups (amorphous region), where the latter provides polymers with flexibility. Highly crystalline polymers like polyethylene (95%), are rigid with a low capacity to resist impacts. PET-bas...

Microbial and Enzymatic Degradation of Synthetic Plastics