What byproducts are there? How do we prevent it spreading to plastic we don’t want decomposing?
this post was submitted on 18 Feb 2025
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What byproducts are there?
I'm not aware of any. In relation to plastic degradation, typically the fungi break down the chemical bonds of the molecules with the help of enzymes.
How do we prevent it spreading to plastic we don’t want decomposing?
I remember one research from europe (I can't find it for some reason) that they were collecting the plastic first and then in a controlled environment they introduced the plastic-eating fungus. It's not that the scientists just threw the fungi in the ocean.
These findings always make me feel optimistic. Imagine if one day each municipality had a huge bin full of plastic eating fungus that all local plastics could just be thrown into. Or imagine if there was some way to give these fungi agency to move around and gorge on litter lol - makes me think of this http://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2024/09/04/science/fungus-robot-mushroom-biohybrid
How do we prevent it spreading to plastic we don’t want decomposing?
This would be such an interesting development, like something from a sci-fi novel. Can we engineer something to eat oil, gasoline perhaps? That'd be wild.