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Modifying an Enzyme to Improve PET Plastic Recycling
Author(s) -
Fenton Robin L.,
Duplan Amanda,
Hall Bonnie L.
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.2020.34.s1.06957
Subject(s) - polyethylene terephthalate , degradation (telecommunications) , enzyme , polyethylene , carbon source , chemistry , materials science , biochemical engineering , computer science , biochemistry , composite material , telecommunications , engineering
Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) is widely used in plastic products that pollute our environment due to improper disposal methods, a cause for global concern. PET plastics are resistant to degradation and thus persist in our environment for lengthy periods of time. The bacterium Ideonella sakaiensis is capable of utilizing PET as a carbon source for growth, using the enzyme PETase to break it down at a very slow rate. We are using enzyme engineering to improve the efficiency of PETase, to make it a viable option in PET recycling. The PETase protein has been successfully over‐expressed and purified, and an HPLC assay developed to quantify PET breakdown. Multiple engineered PETase mutants are being characterized for improved efficiency of PET breakdown and enzymatic stability.