Plastic-Eating Insect Discovery in Kenya

  • 0
  • 3024
Font size:
Print

Plastic-Eating Insect Discovery in Kenya

Context:

A team from the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology in Kenya has discovered plastic-degrading abilities in the Kenyan lesser mealworm larvae, which could contribute to tackling plastic pollution on a large scale.

Discovery of Plastic-Eating Insect in Kenya:

  • Species: The Kenyan lesser mealworm larvae, the larval form of the Alphitobius darkling beetle, can break down polystyrene (commonly known as styrofoam).
  • Significance: This is the first African insect discovered with plastic-eating abilities, joining other known plastic-degrading insects, like the yellow mealworm.

Plastic Pollution and Challenges

  • Problem: Plastic waste is a global environmental issue, with particularly high levels in African countries due to plastic imports and limited recycling options.
  • Polystyrene: Widely used in packaging, polystyrene is difficult to recycle with traditional methods due to its durability and high cost of breakdown processes.

Key Findings and Experiments:

  • Experiment Setup: Over a month, larvae were fed on polystyrene alone, bran alone, and a polystyrene-bran combination.
  • Results:
    • Larvae on the polystyrene-bran diet showed higher survival rates and consumed polystyrene more effectively than those on a polystyrene-only diet.
    • Polystyrene degradation rate: Larvae on the combined diet degraded 11.7% of the total polystyrene.
    • Balanced Diet Importance: Adequate nutrition from bran enhanced plastic breakdown efficiency, showing the insects need more than polystyrene for optimal degradation.

Gut Bacteria and Enzyme Analysis:

  • Bacterial Shifts: Analysis showed that larvae consuming polystyrene had increased levels of Proteobacteria and Firmicutes, along with specific bacteria like Kluyvera, Lactococcus, Citrobacter, and Klebsiella.
  • Plastic-Degrading Enzymes: These bacteria produce enzymes capable of breaking down plastic polymers, essential for plastic degradation.
  • Adaptability: This indicates a possible adaptive bacterial response that supports plastic digestion, with gut bacteria shifting to aid in degradation.

Practical Applications and Future Research

  • Microbial Solutions: Instead of using mealworms directly, isolating bacteria and enzymes from their guts could allow factory-based plastic degradation solutions.
  • Further Research:
    • Focus on identifying specific bacterial strains and enzymes.
    • Exploring potential enzyme production at scale for recycling waste.
    • Investigating other plastics to see if the lesser mealworm’s degradation abilities apply beyond polystyrene.
  • Long-Term Goals: To devise a scalable microbial solution to address plastic waste in Africa and globally by using bacteria instead of insects, thereby managing waste more efficiently.
Share:
Print
Apply What You've Learned.
Previous Post A New Fire-Resilient, Dual-Blooming Species of Dicliptera
Next Post The Case for a G20 Development Bank to Achieve the SDGs
0 0 votes
Article Rating
Subscribe
Notify of
guest
0 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
0
Would love your thoughts, please comment.x
()
x