science
A bacterium found near a Japanese recycling site makes a protein that digests PET, the plastic in drink bottles. Scientists have since engineered faster versions to recycle plastic.
An enzyme is the biological molecule that breaks down the plastic here, since enzymes are specialized proteins that speed up specific chemical reactions, and this one breaks the chemical bonds holding PET plastic together. Scientists found the bacterium producing this enzyme near a Japanese recycling site, having evidently evolved to digest PET as a food source.
A vitamin is a small organic compound the body needs in tiny amounts for normal function, structurally and functionally unrelated to an enzyme's role in breaking chemical bonds. A lipid is a fat or fat-like molecule used for energy storage or as a structural component of cell membranes, not something used to actively break down plastic polymers.
The enzyme, named PETase, was first identified in the bacterium Ideonella sakaiensis, and engineered versions can now break PET down into its basic building blocks in a matter of hours, opening a path toward true bottle-to-bottle plastic recycling.
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