Pseudomonas aeruginosaIt is a common pathogen known for causing a difficult to treat hospital infections, which has evolved a taste of plastic. But not only any plastic. Polycaprolactone (PCL) – Polycaproactone (PCL) – can be destroyed by a vital biodegradable polymer that is widely used in medical transplants – and uses it as a more powerful growth fuel.
This means that in the same environments that aim to recover, some microbes may learn to flourish on the materials designed to restore our bodies.
As if the supercomputs were not really serious enough
Hospitals are sunk in plastic – from industrial breathing tubes and catheter to stitches and surgical networks. Many of these devices are made of PCL because they are VitalDelicious, and easy -to -lepter through 3D printing. These same characteristics may be late now.
P. aeruginosa It is already notorious in the intensive care units to cause pneumonia -related pneumonia and infections related to catheter. According to the World Health Organization, it constitutes one of the greatest threats to humans in terms of antibiotic resistance. But it may be worse than we thought.
A team of scientists at the University of Bronil in London suspects P. aeruginosa He was able to consume plastic. Discover the team, led by Ronan R. McCarthy, clinical wound isolation P. aeruginosa -It is called PA-w23- which has a new enzyme called PAP1. This enzyme collapses PCL by up to 78 % in only seven days. It appears to be able to feed on this plastic, using it as a only carbon source.
But there is more. when P. aeruginosa PCL crash, released a specific compound called 6-Heydroxyhexanoic acid (6h-Ha). Then this secondary product is merged into the vital membranes matrix, the sticky mixture of sugars, proteins and DNA that connects and protects bacteria together. In other words, p. Aergoinosa Not only is plastic digestion to survive – it’s its weapon for its own survival.
The vitality is a sticky defense fortress
Biocytes are a global microbial societies that act as castles against antibiotics and immune defenses. In the presence of plastic, the PA-W23 did not survive-the thick biological membranes were built. These vital membranes seem more fierce.
The researchers tested the vital plastic and non -plastic membranes on the unfortunate moth larvae; The larvae were more likely to kill the vital membranes of the bacteria that consumed plastic.
The team also analyzed whether this is the PAP1 enzyme can work in other strains. Enter the specified gene in Cola I found that E. Coli can also get degrading plastic abilities.
The most disturbing thing, the synthetic nurses’ gymnasium found other enzyme candidates in types such as Pulmonary and Acineetobacter Baumannii. This hints to a wider and hidden tank of microbial plastic clips in clinical environments.
What does all this mean for patients?
Antibiotics resistance is one of the biggest threats to human species. We forget the extent of our weakness before the appearance of antibiotics, and reduce the amount of pathology and change.
We know that medical devices are at risk of pollution. Bacteria can colonize them, form virgin membranes that resist antibiotics and continue in the body. But if pathogens can also break the same materials that make these devices, there is a completely new risk.
This discovery has effects on how to design, monitor and regulate medical implants. For beginners, the inspection of the degrading enzymes of plastic in independent pathogens may become a necessary precaution. If your threads can be met by bacteria, this is not just a failure of the material, it is an entrance to the infection.
There is also an urgent invitation to reconsider the planting materials. Although PCL is usually the assets, they become responsibility. One possible solution may be to integrate antimicrobial agents such as silver or copper particles in PCL devices. The authors note that the early efforts in this direction are already ongoing.
Much remains unknown. We do not know whether the PAP1 is deteriorating other plastic materials such as pets or polyurethane, nor the extent of this feature in the hospital bacteria. We may be able to prevent him from spreading, or it may be really common.
There is also a silver lining for this study. In recent years, scientists have seen microbes as allies in destroying plastic waste. Enzymes can be used like those that these bacteria use to help us reduce some problems of plastic pollution.
the study Deployed in cell.
