A NEW range of biodegradable plastics could be developed using the genetic secrets of a bacterium that manufactures them.
Fed on hydrogen or carbon dioxide, Ralstonia eutropha H16 makes and stores biodegradable plastics in the same way that we store fat. The bacteria are grown commercially to produce plastics under the trade name Biopol. Now a team led by B盲rbel Friedrich at the Humboldt University of Berlin in Germany has sequenced the DNA in the bacterium鈥檚 two chromosomes, finding more than 50 genes involved in producing polyhydroxyalkanoates.
Manufacturers of PHAs can already vary their properties by altering the bugs鈥� diet. It may now be possible to produce novel PHAs by tinkering with the newly identified genes, the researchers say (Nature Biotechnology, DOI: 10.1038/nbt1244).
Advertisement
