We have achieved a new milestone into recycling: transform plastics into paracetamol

The name Escherichia coli It is usually associated with stomach infections, some potentially mortal. Now a genetically modified version could help us synthesize one of the most consumed medications in the world, acetaminophen or paracetamol. And incidentally help us with a no less serious problem, plastic waste.

Recycling. A new study He has shown The possibility of using bacteria in the production of paracetamol based on a common plastic, polyethylene or PET terephthalate, using bacteria as a tool. This mechanism can open the way to a cleaner system to synthesize the popular analgesic and antipyretic.

Plastic and paracetamol have something in common: both are synthesized from hydrocarbons. That is why the team responsible for the new study wanted to demonstrate that the residue of one could serve as raw material in the manufacture of the other.

“This work shows that PET plastic is not just a disposable product or intended to become more plastic: it can be transformed by microorganisms into new and valuable products, including those with potential to treat diseases,” explained in a press release Stephen Wallace, co -author of the study.

E. coli. Normally, bacterium populations E. coli They live in our digestive system. However, some variants of this species have the ability to produce some harmful toxins For our body, resulting in pathogens.

However, the team responsible for developing this new technique has set something very different and is the phosphate of these bacteria. Using genetically rescheduled specimens, the equipment transformed this bacteria into a key step in the transformation of a residue into a medication.

24 hours. All in a process that requires just 24 hours. This process begins with the decomposition of plastic. In its experiment, the team used bottles, although other types of PET plastics could serve in the process.

The team administered tereftallic acid, a derivative of this plastic, to the bacteria carried out by an internal fermentation process that resulted in synthesizing the pharmacological compound. The details of the process were published In an article In the magazine Nature Chemistry.

Decarbonizing the process. One of the details of the process prominent by the team is that this can be performed at room temperature. This implies lower energy consumption and therefore “virtually no carbon emission”, opening the way to a more sustainable production of paracetamol.

The great challenge is to climb this process to make it profitable at the industrial level. Something that will not be easy for what for now we can only talk about a promising technology that can help us face two major challenges in sustainability: residues derived from plastics and drug production.

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Image | Niaid / Doctor 4U UK