Pseudomonas putida
In 2000, the USA produced three million tons of polystyrene, that magical substance that makes up packing peanuts. The problem with polystyrene, is that it tends to hang around. Scientists have discovered a bacteria that can convert polystyrene into PHA, a bio-degradable plastic, that can then be reused.
biologists at the University College Dublin in Ireland have found that a strain of Pseudomonas putida can exist quite happily on a diet of pure styrene oil–the oil remnant of superheated Styrofoam–and, in the process, turn the environmental problem into a useful, biodegradable plastic.
But the bacteria thrived on this new diet, turning 64 grams of undistilled styrene oil into nearly 3 grams of additional bacteria. In the process, the bacteria stored 1.6 grams of the energy of the styrene oil as a biodegradable plastic called polyhydroxyalkanoates, or PHA. This plastic can stand up to heat but also breaks down more naturally in the environment than petroleum-based products.
via d
