BlueRemediomics project co-coordinator Rob Finn from EMBL was recently interviewed for an article in Nature Biotechnology on “Plastic-eating bacteria that boost the growing business of bioremediation”!
Bacteria, fungi and plants can be grown and engineered to remove plastics, chemicals and pollutants from contaminated soil and water. In the article, Rob talks about the MGnify resource held by EMBL – one of the biggest protein databases in the world – and BlueRemediomics’ ongoing work of using this platform to screen for plastic-degrading enzymes.
BlueRemediomics scientists search the MGnify protein database to find sequences that are similar to those of cutinases (a known plastic-degrading enzyme) and have been found in the ocean. By comparing the 3D models of these sequences, the researchers can see if the sequences are predicted to fold like the known plastic eaters.
As stated in the article, BlueRemediomics researchers can carry out “a million of those assays in a week”, and have identified new plastic-eating enzymes, including at least one new enzyme that worked at a lower temperature—a priority for the bioremediation field.
Read the full article in the link below!