Revolutionizing Recycling: Enzymes Breaking Down Plastics for a Circular Economy
The world produces about 400 million tonnes of plastic waste each year. Much of it ends up in landfills, and a significant portion is polluting the world’s oceans. Yet even when plastic is recycled, the process degrades the material, limiting its future recyclability.
In a world grappling with plastic pollution, a team of researchers led by John McGeehan and Rosie Graham at the Centre for Enzyme Innovation at the University of Portsmouth is pioneering a revolutionary solution. Their goal? To develop enzymes that can break down plastic polymers, paving the way for a fully circular plastic economy. This means that plastics can be 100% recycled back to their original state, or even transformed into high-quality virgin plastic.
Watch the video above to hear John and Rosie discuss how a serendipitous email to the AlphaFold team has propelled their groundbreaking research forward.
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