University of Bayreuth, Presse release No. 196/2022 - 30 November 2022
Accelerating plastic degradation in the environment: Bayreuth study researches heat resistance of enzymes
Numerous plastics are principally biodegradable, but are only degraded very slowly in the open air, wastewater, or composting plants. Known enzymes with the ability to degrade plastics could solve this problem. To do so, however, they must be able to withstand high temperatures. An interdisciplinary team from the Collaborative Research Center "Microplastics" at the University of Bayreuth has now presented new methods in the journal "Biomacromolecules" that are a crucial prerequisite for protecting enzymes from high heat. If enzymes are thermally stable, they can be added to biodegradable plastics during production and later accelerate natural degradation.
First author Chengzhang Xu during studies on the thermal stability of enzymes.
UBT / Chr. Wißler.
Prof. Dr. Andreas Möglich (Biochemistry), first author and PhD student Chengzhang Xu, and Prof. Dr. Andreas Greiner (Macromolecular Chemistry II).
UBT / Chr. Wißler.