Insights into the mechanisms involved in the fungal degradation of plastics
Fungi are considered among the most efficient microbial degraders of plastics, as they produce salient enzymes and can survive on recalcitrant compounds with limited nutrients. In recent years, studies have reported numerous species of fungi that can degrade different types of plastics, yet there re...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2023-09-01
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| Series: | Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0147651323007066 |
| _version_ | 1797744123025817600 |
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| author | Eyalira Jacob Okal Gui Heng Ephie A. Magige Sehroon Khan Shixi Wu Zhiqiang Ge Tianfu Zhang Peter E. Mortimer Jianchu Xu |
| author_facet | Eyalira Jacob Okal Gui Heng Ephie A. Magige Sehroon Khan Shixi Wu Zhiqiang Ge Tianfu Zhang Peter E. Mortimer Jianchu Xu |
| author_sort | Eyalira Jacob Okal |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Fungi are considered among the most efficient microbial degraders of plastics, as they produce salient enzymes and can survive on recalcitrant compounds with limited nutrients. In recent years, studies have reported numerous species of fungi that can degrade different types of plastics, yet there remain many gaps in our understanding of the processes involved in biodegradation. In addition, many unknowns need to be resolved regarding the fungal enzymes responsible for plastic fragmentation and the regulatory mechanisms which fungi use to hydrolyse, assimilate and mineralize synthetic plastics. This review aims to detail the main methods used in plastic hydrolysis by fungi, key enzymatic and molecular mechanisms, chemical agents that enhance the enzymatic breakdown of plastics, and viable industrial applications. Considering that polymers such as lignin, bioplastics, phenolics, and other petroleum-based compounds exhibit closely related characteristics in terms of hydrophobicity and structure, and are degraded by similar fungal enzymes as plastics, we have reasoned that genes that have been reported to regulate the biodegradation of these compounds or their homologs could equally be involved in the regulation of plastic degrading enzymes in fungi. Thus, this review highlights and provides insight into some of the most likely regulatory mechanisms by which fungi degrade plastics, target enzymes, genes, and transcription factors involved in the process, as well as key limitations to industrial upscaling of plastic biodegradation and biological approaches that can be employed to overcome these challenges. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T15:05:13Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-4d476accd36d4c32a928b7fed2363fb9 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 0147-6513 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T15:05:13Z |
| publishDate | 2023-09-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety |
| spelling | doaj.art-4d476accd36d4c32a928b7fed2363fb92023-08-13T04:51:58ZengElsevierEcotoxicology and Environmental Safety0147-65132023-09-01262115202Insights into the mechanisms involved in the fungal degradation of plasticsEyalira Jacob Okal0Gui Heng1Ephie A. Magige2Sehroon Khan3Shixi Wu4Zhiqiang Ge5Tianfu Zhang6Peter E. Mortimer7Jianchu Xu8Department of Economic Plants and Biotechnology, Yunnan Key Laboratory for Wild Plant Resources, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China; Center for Mountain Futures, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, Yunnan, ChinaDepartment of Economic Plants and Biotechnology, Yunnan Key Laboratory for Wild Plant Resources, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China; Center for Mountain Futures, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, Yunnan, China; Corresponding authors at: Department of Economic Plants and Biotechnology, Yunnan Key Laboratory for Wild Plant Resources, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, China.University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China; CAS Key Laboratory for Plant Diversity and Biogeography of East Asia, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, ChinaDepartment of Biotechnology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Science and Technology Bannu, 28100 Bannu, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, PakistanScience and Technology on Aerospace Chemical Power Laboratory, Hubei Institute of Aerospace Chemotechnology, Xiangyang 441003, Hubei, ChinaScience and Technology on Aerospace Chemical Power Laboratory, Hubei Institute of Aerospace Chemotechnology, Xiangyang 441003, Hubei, ChinaScience and Technology on Aerospace Chemical Power Laboratory, Hubei Institute of Aerospace Chemotechnology, Xiangyang 441003, Hubei, ChinaDepartment of Economic Plants and Biotechnology, Yunnan Key Laboratory for Wild Plant Resources, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China; Center for Mountain Futures, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, Yunnan, China; Corresponding authors at: Department of Economic Plants and Biotechnology, Yunnan Key Laboratory for Wild Plant Resources, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, China.Department of Economic Plants and Biotechnology, Yunnan Key Laboratory for Wild Plant Resources, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China; Center for Mountain Futures, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, Yunnan, China; Corresponding authors at: Department of Economic Plants and Biotechnology, Yunnan Key Laboratory for Wild Plant Resources, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, China.Fungi are considered among the most efficient microbial degraders of plastics, as they produce salient enzymes and can survive on recalcitrant compounds with limited nutrients. In recent years, studies have reported numerous species of fungi that can degrade different types of plastics, yet there remain many gaps in our understanding of the processes involved in biodegradation. In addition, many unknowns need to be resolved regarding the fungal enzymes responsible for plastic fragmentation and the regulatory mechanisms which fungi use to hydrolyse, assimilate and mineralize synthetic plastics. This review aims to detail the main methods used in plastic hydrolysis by fungi, key enzymatic and molecular mechanisms, chemical agents that enhance the enzymatic breakdown of plastics, and viable industrial applications. Considering that polymers such as lignin, bioplastics, phenolics, and other petroleum-based compounds exhibit closely related characteristics in terms of hydrophobicity and structure, and are degraded by similar fungal enzymes as plastics, we have reasoned that genes that have been reported to regulate the biodegradation of these compounds or their homologs could equally be involved in the regulation of plastic degrading enzymes in fungi. Thus, this review highlights and provides insight into some of the most likely regulatory mechanisms by which fungi degrade plastics, target enzymes, genes, and transcription factors involved in the process, as well as key limitations to industrial upscaling of plastic biodegradation and biological approaches that can be employed to overcome these challenges.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0147651323007066Plastic biodegradationPre-treatmentEnzyme hydrolysisProoxidantsMolecular mechanisms |
| spellingShingle | Eyalira Jacob Okal Gui Heng Ephie A. Magige Sehroon Khan Shixi Wu Zhiqiang Ge Tianfu Zhang Peter E. Mortimer Jianchu Xu Insights into the mechanisms involved in the fungal degradation of plastics Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety Plastic biodegradation Pre-treatment Enzyme hydrolysis Prooxidants Molecular mechanisms |
| title | Insights into the mechanisms involved in the fungal degradation of plastics |
| title_full | Insights into the mechanisms involved in the fungal degradation of plastics |
| title_fullStr | Insights into the mechanisms involved in the fungal degradation of plastics |
| title_full_unstemmed | Insights into the mechanisms involved in the fungal degradation of plastics |
| title_short | Insights into the mechanisms involved in the fungal degradation of plastics |
| title_sort | insights into the mechanisms involved in the fungal degradation of plastics |
| topic | Plastic biodegradation Pre-treatment Enzyme hydrolysis Prooxidants Molecular mechanisms |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0147651323007066 |
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