Salinas Jesus, Martinez-Gallardo Maria R, Jurado Macarena M, Suarez-Estrella Francisca, Lopez-Gonzalez Juan A, Estrella-Gonzalez Maria J, Toribio Ana J, Carpena-Istan Victor, Lopez Maria J
Unit of Microbiology, Department of Biology and Geology, CITE II-B, Agrifood Campus of International Excellence ceiA3, CIAIMBITAL, University of Almeria, 04120, Almeria, Spain.
Unit of Microbiology, Department of Biology and Geology, CITE II-B, Agrifood Campus of International Excellence ceiA3, CIAIMBITAL, University of Almeria, 04120, Almeria, Spain.
Environ Pollut. 2025 Feb 1;366:125333. doi: 10.1016/j.envpol.2024.125333. Epub 2024 Nov 28.
The accumulation of plastic in ecosystems is one of the most critical environmental concerns today. Plastic biodegradation using individual microbial cultures has shown limited success, which can be improved by employing microbial consortia with appropriate enzymatic capabilities. This study aims to assemble and characterize microbial consortia using ligninolytic fungi and bacteria isolated from an agricultural waste composting process, with the goal of enhancing the efficiency of plastic biodegradation. The compost microbiome demonstrated plastic-degrading functionality, particularly during the raw material and cooling phases. Ligninolytic microorganisms from compost were characterized for enzymes related to plastic degradation and their ability to colonize plastic films. The genera Bacillus, Pseudomonas, Fusarium, Aspergillus, Scedosporium, and Pseudallescheria exhibited a wide range of activities associated with plastic biodegradation, making them candidates for consortia assembly. The biodegradation of polyethylene using single and consortium cultures revealed that consortia, particularly those combining Bacillus subtilis RBM2 with Fusarium oxysporum RHM1, enhanced degradation efficiency. Additionally, consortia targeting multiple plastics, including virgin and recycled linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and polystyrene (PS), showed varying levels of success, with bacterial-bacterial combinations such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa RBM21 and Bacillus subtilis RBM2 demonstrating broad-spectrum plastic degradation. These findings underscore the potential of compost-derived microorganisms for plastic biodegradation and suggest that utilizing microbial consortia offers a promising approach to tackling plastic pollution.
塑料在生态系统中的积累是当今最关键的环境问题之一。使用单一微生物培养物进行塑料生物降解的成效有限，而通过采用具有适当酶活性的微生物群落可加以改善。本研究旨在利用从农业废弃物堆肥过程中分离出的木质素分解真菌和细菌来组建和表征微生物群落，以提高塑料生物降解效率。堆肥微生物群落显示出塑料降解功能，尤其是在原材料和冷却阶段。对堆肥中的木质素分解微生物进行了与塑料降解相关的酶及其在塑料薄膜上定殖能力的表征。芽孢杆菌属、假单胞菌属、镰刀菌属、曲霉属、赛多孢属和拟阿利什菌属表现出与塑料生物降解相关的广泛活性，使其成为群落组建的候选菌株。使用单一培养物和群落培养物对聚乙烯进行生物降解的结果表明，群落，特别是将枯草芽孢杆菌RBM2与尖孢镰刀菌RHM1组合的群落，提高了降解效率。此外，针对多种塑料（包括原生和回收线性低密度聚乙烯（LLDPE）、聚对苯二甲酸乙二酯（PET）和聚苯乙烯（PS））的群落取得了不同程度的成功，铜绿假单胞菌RBM21和枯草芽孢杆菌RBM2等细菌-细菌组合表现出广谱塑料降解能力。这些发现强调了堆肥衍生微生物在塑料生物降解方面的潜力，并表明利用微生物群落为解决塑料污染提供了一种有前景的方法。
