Shrimp farm bacteria found to munch on plastic waste
Shukri ZNA, Yatim NI, Hossain S, Chik CENCE, Endut A
Phytoremediation
The same microbial ingenuity that breaks down leaf litter in your compost pile is turning up in an unexpected place, shrimp farm sludge, offering a glimpse of how nature might one day help clear plastic out of soil and waterways.
Researchers went digging through the gunk at the bottom of a shrimp farming tank and found a bacteria that normally helps clump particles together, but it turns out this microbe has a hidden talent: it can slowly eat plastic. Over about seven weeks, it chewed through a measurable chunk of three common plastic types, leaving behind visible pits and chemical changes in the material. It's early days, but it points to microbes as a potential tool against the mountains of plastic piling up in the environment.
Key Findings
Isolated bacterium Microbacterium aurantiacum from shrimp aquaculture biofloc showed 95% flocculation efficiency in a kaolin test
After 50 days of incubation, the bacterium degraded 9.2% of polypropylene, 8.9% of polyethylene, and 8.8% of polystyrene by weight
Spectroscopy confirmed structural and chemical changes in the plastics, and agar plate tests showed clear zones indicating plastic-degrading extracellular enzymes
chevron_right Technical Summary
Scientists discovered a bacteria living in shrimp farm wastewater that can break down plastic. This strain of Microbacterium aurantiacum ate away up to 9% of common plastics like polypropylene, polyethylene, and polystyrene in just 50 days, hinting at a cheap, natural way to tackle plastic pollution.
Abstract Preview
Original paper
Characterisation and degradation of microplastic by Microbacterium aurantiacum isolated from biofloc in white shrimp aquaculture closed system.
This study pioneers the investigation of a novel bacteria isolated from the biofloc of a recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) for its role as a microplastic degrader. A targeted bioflocculant-pro...
open_in_new Read full abstractAbstract copyright held by the original publisher.
Was this useful?
Want to tell us more? (optional)
Thanks for the note!
Something went wrong — please try again.
Too many submissions. Try again in an hour.
Nanoplastics interfere with plant-mycorrhizal communication and limit plant growth.
Microplastics breaking down in your garden soil are quietly strangling the beneficial fungi that help your vegetables absorb phosphorus and other nutrients, ...
Soil health is the capacity of soil to function as a living ecosystem, supporting complex interactions between microorganisms, soil fauna, and plant communities. For plant science, soil health is critical because these biological and chemical soil properties directly control nutrient availability,
arrow_forward Explore topic