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Scientists Accidentally Create Mutant Enzyme That Eats Plastic Bottles (theguardian.com)
Scientists have created a mutant enzyme that breaks down plastic drinks bottles -- by accident. The breakthrough could help solve the global plastic pollution crisis by enabling for the first time the full recycling of bottles. From a report: The new research was spurred by the discovery in 2016 of the first bacterium that had naturally evolved to eat plastic, at a waste dump in Japan. Scientists have now revealed the detailed structure of the crucial enzyme produced by the bug. The international team then tweaked the enzyme to see how it had evolved, but tests showed they had inadvertently made the molecule even better at breaking down the PET (polyethylene terephthalate) plastic used for soft drink bottles. "What actually turned out was we improved the enzyme, which was a bit of a shock," said Prof John McGeehan, at the University of Portsmouth, UK, who led the research. "It's great and a real finding." The mutant enzyme takes a few days to start breaking down the plastic -- far faster than the centuries it takes in the oceans. But the researchers are optimistic this can be speeded up even further and become a viable large-scale process.
"Mutant 59: The Plastic Eaters". I thought it was by Michael Crichton, but apparently not.
The book is by Kit Pedler and Gerry Davis from 1972. I've read it and it's pretty good (for its time, anyway) -- things do *not* go well in the world, remember that electrical wiring is insulated with plastic. I usually reference this whenever something like this comes up, but you beat me to it.
It must have been something you assimilated. . . .
If the enzyme gets loose? You do know what an enzyme is, don't you?
The bacteria which produced the precursor is already loose--it was a naturally occurring beast. Just how dangerous it is remains to be seen. It's worth worrying about.
But this new enzyme? It's true that enzymes aren't destroyed by their processes--that's one of their defining features--but they also don't move by themselves, so they're not going to "eat" anything they're not actively placed on. Nor do they reproduce. I think we're pretty safe.
I mean, sulfuric acid will also eat many plastics. Do you worry about sulfuric acid "getting loose" and eating your fleece jacket?
It's an *ENZYME*, not bacteria. It isn't alive. It doesn't reproduce. It isn't a virus. It does not infect organisms to cause them to make more of itself. It just helps a particular chemical change to occur.