For a brief moment, Nathan Crook allowed himself to disregard the slow, deliberative process scientists use working in a lab. \u201cOh, my God,\u201d he said, recalling the moment when his team at NC State showed that they could genetically engineer a marine microorganism so that it would break down the plastic that\u2019s a source of significant pollution in oceans. \u201cI can\u2019t believe this actually works.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Level heads quickly prevailed, and Crook, an assistant professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering, recognized that they faced some significant challenges before their findings could be used to reduce the pollution caused by plastics. But still, his excitement was understandable. \u201cNature hasn\u2019t figured out how to get rid of this stuff really fast yet,\u201d he says. \u201cMaybe we can give humanity that answer.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The initial finding is a significant leap in the right direction. It was the result of the team\u2019s work with two species of bacteria\u2009\u2014\u2009one that thrives and reproduces very quickly in saltwater and another that produces enzymes that break down and eat the polyethylene terephthalate (PET) used in water bottles and other plastics. By combining the two bacteria, the team was able to break down PET in saltwater at room temperature. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some of the next challenges are to make the modified microorganism more stable and efficient\u2009\u2014\u2009the new process would still take many years to break down PET\u2009\u2014\u2009and to find ways to produce a desirable end product such as fertilizer or feedstock. \u201cWe have to convert it to something useful,\u201d Crook says. \u201cNo one is going to use it unless they can make money off of it. Waste plastic has no value, but here\u2019s a catalyst to convert that plastic into something that has more value.\u201d <\/p>\n","protected":false,"raw":"\n\n\n\n\n
For a brief moment, Nathan Crook allowed himself to disregard the slow, deliberative process scientists use working in a lab. \u201cOh, my God,\u201d he said, recalling the moment when his team at NC State showed that they could genetically engineer a marine microorganism so that it would break down the plastic that\u2019s a source of significant pollution in oceans. \u201cI can\u2019t believe this actually works.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Level heads quickly prevailed, and Crook, an assistant professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering, recognized that they faced some significant challenges before their findings could be used to reduce the pollution caused by plastics. But still, his excitement was understandable. \u201cNature hasn\u2019t figured out how to get rid of this stuff really fast yet,\u201d he says. \u201cMaybe we can give humanity that answer.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The initial finding is a significant leap in the right direction. It was the result of the team\u2019s work with two species of bacteria\u2009\u2014\u2009one that thrives and reproduces very quickly in saltwater and another that produces enzymes that break down and eat the polyethylene terephthalate (PET) used in water bottles and other plastics. By combining the two bacteria, the team was able to break down PET in saltwater at room temperature. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some of the next challenges are to make the modified microorganism more stable and efficient\u2009\u2014\u2009the new process would still take many years to break down PET\u2009\u2014\u2009and to find ways to produce a desirable end product such as fertilizer or feedstock. \u201cWe have to convert it to something useful,\u201d Crook says. \u201cNo one is going to use it unless they can make money off of it. Waste plastic has no value, but here\u2019s a catalyst to convert that plastic into something that has more value.\u201d <\/p>\n"},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
NC State team genetically engineers a microorganism that can break down plastics in saltwater.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":39,"featured_media":5766,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"views\/single-immersive.blade.php","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"source":"","ncst_custom_author":"","ncst_show_custom_author":false,"ncst_dynamicHeaderBlockName":"ncst\/default-immersive-post-header","ncst_dynamicHeaderData":"{\"backgroundColor\":\"gray_600\",\"caption\":\"Illustration by Daniel Hertzberg\",\"displayCategoryID\":9,\"showAuthor\":true,\"showDate\":true,\"showFeaturedVideo\":false,\"subtitle\":\"NC State team genetically engineers a microorganism that can break down plastics in saltwater.
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