![]() ![]() Together with polypropylene (PP), polystyrene (PS) and polyvinylchloride (PVC), PE is one of the most resistant polymers, with very long C–C chains organized in a crystalline, dense structure. "The caterpillar produces something that breaks the chemical bond, perhaps in its salivary glands or a symbiotic bacteria in its gut," said Cambridge University's Paolo Bombelli said.Polyethylene (PE) accounts for 30% of synthetic plastic production, largely contributing to plastic waste pollution on the planet to-date 1. People around the world use about 1 trillion plastic bags each year, the study said, and more than 45 million tonnes of polyethylene plastics are produced annually. The team of three scientists said the discovery could lead to a biotechnological approach to plastic pollution. To compare: plastic-eating bacteria biodegraded plastic at a rate of 0.13mg a day, and it takes 100 to 400 years to degrade polyethylene in landfill.Īnalysis showed the wax worms transformed the polyethylene into ethylene glycol, a chemical used to make polyester and anti-freeze. When the team exposed about 100 wax worms to a plastic shopping bag, holes started to appear after 40 minutes, with a reduction of 92mg after 12 hours. The degradation rate was extremely fast compared to other discoveries, like plastic-eating bacteria, the study published in Current Biology found. The team discovered the wax worm, a caterpillar commercially bred for fishing bait, has the ability to biodegrade polyethylene - a type of plastic used to make shopping bags - at uniquely high speeds. It was that chance discovery that led her to collaborate with scientists at the University of Cambridge in England to unearth the possibility of using worms to munch through the world's plastic problem. When she returned to the bag, it was riddled with holes and many of the worms had escaped. Scientist and amateur beekeeper Federica Bertocchini picked parasitic wax worms from the honeycomb of her beehives and left them sitting in a plastic bag. ![]()
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