A new discovery in the fight against ocean plastic pollution has scientists buzzing. Researchers have found a plastic-eating fungus living in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, helping to break down plastic waste in the ocean. This exciting find could lead to more effective ways to tackle the growing plastic problem.
The fungus, called Parengyodontium album, was discovered among a mix of microbes that thrive on the floating plastic waste in the North Pacific. This is the fourth known type of marine fungus capable of breaking down plastic. The fungus specifically targets polyethylene, the type of plastic used for products like water bottles and grocery bags. This plastic is one of the most common forms of pollution in our oceans.
How the Fungus Works
The discovery shows that UV light, which naturally breaks down plastic over time, also helps fungi like P. album break it down biologically. Annika Vaksmaa, a marine biologist and the lead author of the study, explained that UV light not only weakens plastic but also makes it easier for marine fungi to break it down. This is a promising step forward, but it's not a perfect solution yet.
Don't Celebrate Just Yet
While this discovery is exciting, it doesn’t mean we should start using plastic without worry. Our oceans are already overwhelmed with plastic pollution, and fungi alone won’t be enough to clean it up. Reducing our use of plastic is still the best way to prevent more waste from piling up in the ocean.
Cleaning up the plastic that's already there is a huge challenge. Collecting ocean plastic with large nets can harm marine life and is expensive. So, finding ways to speed up the natural breakdown of plastic, like with P. album, is an important step in the right direction, but it's not the ultimate fix.
The Speed of Plastic Breakdown
In lab tests, P. album broke down UV-exposed plastic at a rate of 0.05% per day over nine days. While this is progress, it would take a very long time for this fungus to break down all the plastic in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, let alone the millions of tons of plastic that enter the ocean every year.
However, the fact that P. album can break down plastic at all is promising, and researchers believe there may be other fungi out there that can help. They also suggest that marine fungi could play a larger role in breaking down other carbon-based materials, which could lead to even more discoveries in the future.
In the fight against ocean plastic, every step forward counts. While it’s clear that we still have a long way to go, the discovery of P. album gives us hope that nature might help us tackle some of the mess we've made.
Source: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0048969724029668…
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