Characterization of a novel poly(3-hydroxybutyrate)-degrading bacterium, isolated from marine plastisphere.. Nocardioides

Plastic wastes are estimated to be discharged into marine environments by wind and river currents annually. Plastic debris and micro-plastics spilled into the marine environment can be inadvertently ingested or entangled by wildlife, causing their populations to decline, ultimately destroying the ecosystem. Hence, biodegradable plastics are attracting attention as one of the solutions to the problems caused by plastic waste. Microbial biodegradable polyester, poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) [P(3HB)] shows great biodegradability in marine environments. We focused on a marine microbial community formed on the plastic surfaces (plastisphere) as a source of novel P(3HB)-degrading microbes. The strain that degraded P(3HB) was isolated from a polypropylene (PP) plastic bag debris collected from a beach in Japan using clear-zone methods. The analysis of the genomic DNA would give us useful information regarding biodegradation of plastics and formation of biofilms.