Story thread · 2 reports / 1 sources

Compost microbe yields enzyme that tackles polyurethane foam and nylon

phys.org · 3dShare

Researchers from Aarhus University and the Danish Technological Institute have taken a new approach in the search for enzymes capable of breaking down some of the most difficult types of plastic to recycle. They collected millions of bacteria from a landfill in Kenya, Randers Regnskov Tropical Zoo, the guts of larvae and a compost heap near Aarhus—and examined their enzymes. They found 12 that work.

First report: Breaking down shoe foam by genetically tweaking a microbe found in compost — phys.org, 3d