A gut fungus from mealworms eats compostable plastic for food
Feng J, Zhou W, Luo C, Lin X, Mo X
Phytoremediation
That compostable plant pot or plastic-like food container you toss in the compost bin often doesn't actually break down without help, and this fungus shows what real decomposition looks like at the microbial level.
Researchers discovered a fungus living in the guts of mealworms that had been fed polylactic acid, a common plant-based bioplastic used in things like compostable cups and 3D-printing filament. The fungus produces enzymes that chop the plastic into lactic acid, then eats that lactic acid as fuel, eating away almost a quarter of a plastic film's weight in just over a month. It's a glimpse into how nature's smallest decomposers can help clean up the plastics we think of as 'eco-friendly' but that don't actually disappear on their own.
Key Findings
The fungus Sporobolomyces pararoseus ZRQ01, isolated from PLA-fed mealworm gut microbiota, degraded 22.8% of PLA film weight over 35 days when supplemented with glucose
Combined transcriptomic, proteomic, and genomic analysis showed the fungus upregulates hydrolytic enzymes to cleave PLA into lactic acid, then imports it via monocarboxylate transporters and metabolizes it through pyruvate metabolism and the TCA cycle
Degradation triggered stress-adaptive responses, including upregulation of autophagy-related and MAPK signaling pathway genes, suggesting coordinated cellular adjustment supports sustained plastic breakdown
chevron_right Technical Summary
Scientists found a yeast-like fungus living in mealworm guts that can break down compostable plastic (PLA) by digesting it into lactic acid and using it as food, offering a new tool for tackling bioplastic waste.
Abstract Preview
Original paper
Multiomic insights into fungal polylactic acid degradation: Metabolic adaptation and hydrolytic mechanisms of Sporobolomyces pararoseus.
Polylactic acid (PLA), a biodegradable polyester from renewable resources, is a sustainable alternative to petrochemical plastics. However, its environmental degradation is inefficient naturally, r...
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