New Delhi: The waste plastic bottle lying in your kitchen dustbin could one day help treat Parkinson’s disease, states a new study. Polyethylene terephthalate (PET), the raw material of plastic bottles, is the key component in this breakthrough.
For this, the researchers at the University of Edinburgh deployed a specially engineered Escherichia coli bacterium to convert PET-derived compounds into useful pharmaceutical ingredients. The bacteria effectively transform plastic waste—used in food and drink packaging—into a “therapeutic” for drug production.
And that is how PET was converted into L-DOPA, the drug which has earned a reputation as the “gold standard” for managing motor control problems in patients with Parkinson’s disease.
“The process involves first breaking down PET waste – some 50 million tonnes of which are produced annually – into chemical building blocks of terephthalic acid,” the newsletter on the University of Edinburgh website said.
The technique has been hailed as the most “sustainable” compared to traditional methods of making pharmaceuticals, which were derived from fossil fuels.
“There is an urgent need for new methods to recycle PET, a strong, lightweight plastic derived from non-renewable materials such as oil and gas,” the team of researchers said. They termed the existing recycling process as not completely “efficient”, adding to the “plastic pollution” worldwide.
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‘Tackling a pressing challenge’
With this breakthrough, the research team is now focusing on taking the technology forward for wider industrial applications. For now, it remains a lab-based proof of concept, and the researchers are looking at ways to scale it up for industrial use.
“This feels like just the beginning. If we can create medicines for neurological diseases from waste plastic bottles, it’s exciting to imagine what else this technology could achieve,” said Stephen Wallace, a biotechnologist at the University of Edinburgh.
The researchers are also moving beyond drug production, transforming the world of industrial waste into valuable, sustainable chemicals and materials.
The £14 million Carbon-Loop Sustainable Biomanufacturing Hub (C-Loop) is supported by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). These findings are published in the journal Nature Sustainability. The research was funded by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and the Industrial Biotechnology Innovation Centre (IBioIC), with test lab and innovation centre Impact Solutions as an industry partner.
“This research shows the huge potential of engineering biology to tackle some of society’s most pressing challenges. By converting discarded plastic into a treatment for Parkinson’s disease, the University of Edinburgh team has demonstrated how carbon that would otherwise be lost to landfill or pollution can be turned into high-value products that improve lives. It’s a great example of how EPSRC’s investment in C-Loop is enabling innovative, sustainable manufacturing approaches that benefit both people and the planet,” said Professor Charlotte Deane, EPSRC Executive Chair, UKRI.
(Edited by Saptak Datta)