
A Better Approach to Biodegradation of Polymer Waste
There are hundreds of researchers focused on applying biological solutions to plastic waste. Their efforts can be divided into two approaches. The first uses “bugs” — microbes, fungi, and so forth — to eat the plastic, while the second, less-common approach uses biochemicals, specifically enzymes made by “bugs,” to degrade the plastic. (Enzymes are protein-based catalysts that speed up a specific chemical reaction without being consumed in it.) Researchers at UT-Austin…