The plump, shiny larvae of Tenebrionidae, probably called “superworms” because of their size, are usually happy to munching on wheat bran. However, many of the two-inch long creatures have recently found themselves eating at much stranger fares in the service of science. Polystyrene is a long-life plastic packaging material known by the brand name Styrofoam.
Moreover, the larvae that managed to suffocate this unique ingredient did not expire, as you would expect.As scientists documented A paper published in the journal Microbial Genomics on ThursdayResearchers were urged to check the digestive system of microorganisms that could break down polystyrene, as they gained a little weight and were able to transform into beetles in most cases. If scientists can understand the toolkit of such microorganisms, they can devise better ways to recycle this tenacious substance.
These are not the first insects given polystyrene in the lab.Mealworms Their ability to eat the substances that make up peanut packing, Among other plastics, said Christian Linke, a microbiologist at the University of Queensland, Australia and author of a new paper.Same for mealworms and superworms Polystyrene consumption has been observed, And when given antibiotics, they lose this ability. Therefore, the researchers concluded that the gut flora is likely to be behind this unusual talent.
The question was exactly what was in those microbial flora. To find out, Dr. Linke and his colleagues raised three groups of superworms in the lab. One group ate bran, one group ate a block of polystyrene, and the third group ate nothing. (The experiment was temporarily suspended because hungry superworms tend to eat cannibalism. It is possible to continue the study by giving each unfed superworm its own private space. I was able to do it.)
Bran was clearly much more attractive to superworms, but they tried polystyrene. Within 48 hours, the polystyrene group’s feces turned from light brown to white and gained weight very slowly over a three-week period.
When it was time for the insects to transform into beetles, the bran-eating insects completed the transition normally in almost 93 percent of the time. Hungry people convened only 10 percent. Surprisingly, 66.7 percent of polystyrene-eating larvae given the opportunity for pupation were successful. They were able to get enough energy to convert from the infamous indigestible substance.
“Polystyrene is definitely a poor diet,” said Dr. Linke. But “worms can survive it. They don’t look sick or anything.”
Researchers have sequenced all the DNA that can be extracted from the larval intestine. They were less interested in which particular microorganisms were present than in which enzymes were made when the microorganisms worked to break down polystyrene. They identified a small number of promising candidates (all types of enzymes known for their ability to slice and dice) that could cut polystyrene into smaller pieces.
“The next step is to express those enzymes in the lab and experimentally verify that they are doing what we think,” Dr. Linke said.
Given the details of the conditions required by these enzymes and the exact nature of their capabilities, Dr. Linke hopes that an industrial process for recycling packing foam will be designed someday. At this time, used polystyrene can be processed into certain types of building materials to keep them out of landfills. However, a much better solution is to disassemble the component and then revert to the new one. Perhaps you can use microorganisms to rotate them into fresh bioplastics.
“It will make the whole thing more economically interesting,” he said. “It will produce something that is sought after.”