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How a Novel Reaction in E. Coli Helps Recycle Plastic Into Paracetamol
- On June 23, 2025, scientists published a study in Nature Chemistry showing engineered E. coli bacteria can convert plastic waste into paracetamol in the lab.
- This research emerges from plastic pollution generating over 350 million tons of waste yearly and the fossil fuel-based, carbon-intensive production of paracetamol.
- The team triggered a new-to-nature Lossen rearrangement reaction in genetically modified E. coli to break down PET plastic and produce paracetamol at room temperature without carbon emissions.
- Researchers achieved a conversion efficiency as high as 92%, and Stephen Wallace highlighted that this breakthrough introduces a novel perspective on harnessing microbes as miniature biochemical factories.
- This approach has the potential to lessen plastic waste and decrease greenhouse gas emissions associated with pharmaceutical production, though it is still at an early experimental stage and not yet suitable for industrial-scale use.
39 Articles
39 Articles
Bacteria can turn plastic waste into a painkiller
Tylenol could potentially be made greener and cheaper with the help of bacteria. Scientists were able to use a bacterial chemical reaction to convert a plastic water bottle into paracetamol with no environmental strain. This development could alter the way drugs are produced and provide a much-needed solution to the plastic pollution problem.Plastic pillsThe bacteria Escherichia coli or E.coli, common in the gut microbiome, can be used to break …
The recycling science has reached a remarkable framework: the ability to transform plastic waste into paracetamol. This discovery addresses the growing problem of this type of waste and opens new ways for sustainable production...
How a novel reaction in E. coli helps recycle plastic into paracetamol
Researchers have demonstrated that E. coli can perform a biocompatible Lossen rearrangement, enabling phosphate-catalysed conversion of synthetic substrates into valuable compounds. This approach allows engineered bacteria to upcycle PET plastic waste into paracetamol, highlighting a novel intersection of chemistry and biotechnology.
The principles of this research that used strains of Escherichia Coli opens the door to organic drug production
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