This mushroom could help to break down plastic in just a few weeks

Can a fungus reduce the environmental impact of plastics??

More and more plastic waste pollutes our environment. Unfortunately, it takes a very long time for plastics to degrade. Researchers have now discovered a special fungus that can break down plastic in just weeks, rather than years.

Scientists have discovered a fungus on a garbage dump in Pakistan, which could in the future help to break down plastics in just a few weeks. The experts reported on the results of their study in the journal "State of the World's Fungi".

Some mushrooms grow preferentially on a special underground and also the capabilities of mushrooms differ in some cases substantially. (Image: ermess / fotolia.com)

Mushroom can degrade polyester polyurethane in just eight weeks

Researchers discovered that the fungus, called Aspergillus tubingensis, can break down a type of plastic known as polyester-polyurethane (PU) in just eight weeks. Plastics usually take decades or even hundreds of years to biodegrade, making them extremely harmful to the environment.

Plastic waste has to be disposed of

Earlier this week, a huge "garbage collector" was set free in the Pacific Ocean to try and clean up some of the plastic garbage there. Even if the plastic garbage is collected, there is still no way to get rid of the garbage without using conventional garbage dumps or burning it. The mushroom with the exceptional feature could now remedy. Mushrooms are an integral part of our ecosystem and can form or influence a natural habitat.

Mushrooms have various useful uses

This organism is only one of several new discoveries highlighted in a report on the importance of mushrooms. While common mushrooms are commonly used as food, mushrooms have also proven to be extremely useful in the fields of medicine, biofuel production, and more recently, waste disposal, the researchers explain.

There are an estimated 3.8 million different types of mushrooms

In the report, the authors describe the global state of fungi, which shows how important they are to the entire organic life on earth. It is believed that there are up to 3.8 million different species of fungi, but science has so far identified only 144,000 of them.

Mushrooms play a big role for plants and humans

In fact, 90 percent of all the plants we know are in some way dependent on fungi to stay alive and thrive. For example, orchids depend almost entirely on fungi to germinate, experts say. Penicillin and a number of other life-saving medicines have all been derived from fungi. Washing powder uses mushrooms to eliminate stains.

Enzyme can consume plastics

Earlier this year, a team of scientists discovered a new enzyme that could also consume some of the most environmentally damaging plastics, experts from the University of Portsmouth said in a press release. The enzyme has only been produced since the production of the plastic polyethylene terephthalate (PET). The scientists were indeed able to further improve their plastic-consuming capabilities, and hope that this enzyme can be produced on an industrial scale. (As)