Bacterium species capable of breaking down PET discovered
Q. A bacterium species which can break down PET has been identified by Japanese researchers. What is it called?- Published on 11 Mar 16a. Ideonella sakaiensis 201-F6
b. Ideonella sakaiensis 201-A6
c. Ideonella sakaiensis 201-C6
d. Ideonella sakaiensis 201-G6
ANSWER: Ideonella sakaiensis 201-F6
The bacterium which has been discovered by Japanese researchers uses two enzymes in sequence to break down the highly biodegradable-resistant polymer PET. With the exception of rare instances of fungi found to grow in mineral medium of PET yards, no reports are there of bacterial biologically degrading PET before this. From the microbial consortium that has been found to degrade PET, the researchers isolated a unique bacterium — Ideonella sakaiensis 201-F6 — that could almost completely degrade a thin film of PET in a short span of six weeks at 30°C. “The PET film was damaged extensively and almost completely degraded after six weeks at 30°C,” they noted. Bacterium has two enzymes, the first of which produces a substance through hydrolysis while another produces two monomers - ethylene glycol and terephthalic acid — that are used for making PET through polymerisation.
