[Isolation and characterization of a polyurethane-degrading bacterium]

Area of Science:

• Microbiology
• Environmental Science
• Biotechnology

Background:

• Polyurethane (PUR) plastics are persistent environmental pollutants.
• Microbial degradation offers a promising strategy for managing PUR waste.
• Identifying efficient PUR-degrading microorganisms is crucial for developing bioremediation technologies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To isolate and identify microorganisms capable of degrading polyurethane.
• To evaluate the degradation efficiency of the isolated strain on different polyurethane materials.
• To assess the potential of the identified strain for the biodegradation of polyurethane waste.

Main Methods:

• Isolation of polyurethane-degrading microorganisms from plastic waste.
• Identification of the bacterial isolate using colony morphology and 16S rDNA phylogenetic analysis.
• Quantification of polyurethane degradation using waterborne polyurethane (Impranil DLN) and commercial PUR foam as sole carbon sources in MSM medium.

Main Results:

• A novel bacterial strain, P10, belonging to the genus Brevibacillus, was isolated.
• Brevibacillus sp. P10 degraded 71.4% of Impranil DLN within 6 days when DLN was the sole carbon source.
• The strain effectively degraded 50 mg of commercial PUR foam within 6 days under optimized conditions, utilizing it as a sole carbon source.

Conclusions:

• Brevibacillus sp. P10 demonstrates significant capability in degrading both waterborne and solid forms of polyurethane.
• This bacterium holds considerable potential for application in the bioremediation of polyurethane pollution.
• Further research into optimizing conditions and scaling up the process could lead to effective microbial solutions for plastic waste management.