Environment & Mycoremediation

·

Study

Pestalotiopsis Fungus Rapidly Breaks Down Plastics Without Oxygen

Pestalotiopsis Fungus Rapidly Breaks Down Plastics Without Oxygen

Pestalotiopsis, Phanerochaete, Aspergillus, Penicillium

What they found

Of four fungi, Pestalotiopsis microspora broke down polyurethane and PET fastest, even without oxygen.

Of four fungi, Pestalotiopsis microspora broke down polyurethane and PET fastest, even without oxygen.

How solid is it?

Lab dish

Lab dish

In vitro (lab dish)

In vitro (lab dish)

Evidence ladder: Lab dish → Animal → Early human → Strong human. Reviews summarize earlier research.

At a glance

Latin name

Pestalotiopsis microspora, Phanerochaete chrysosporium, Aspergillus niger, Penicillium simplicissimum

Pestalotiopsis microspora, Phanerochaete chrysosporium, Aspergillus niger, Penicillium simplicissimum

Compound

serine hydrolases, PETase

serine hydrolases, PETase

Published in

ResearchGate

ResearchGate

Covered in Shroom Scan

Section

ECOLOGY & CONSERVATION

ECOLOGY & CONSERVATION

As it ran in Shroom Scan

Plastic to Carbon

Plastic to Carbon

A new study compared four fungi—Pestalotiopsis microspora, Phanerochaete chrysosporium, Aspergillus niger, and Penicillium simplicissimum—for their ability to degrade plastics while aiding carbon capture. Pestalotiopsis stood out, rapidly breaking down polyurethane and PET even without oxygen using enzymes like serine hydrolases and PETase.

A new study compared four fungi—Pestalotiopsis microspora, Phanerochaete chrysosporium, Aspergillus niger, and Penicillium simplicissimum—for their ability to degrade plastics while aiding carbon capture. Pestalotiopsis stood out, rapidly breaking down polyurethane and PET even without oxygen using enzymes like serine hydrolases and PETase.

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