Microorganisms harbor keys to a circular bioeconomy making them useful tools in fighting plastic pollution and rising CO2 levels

Garabed Antranikian,Wolfgang R. Streit

doi:10.1007/s00792-022-01261-4

Garabed Antranikian, Wolfgang R. Streit

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1007/s00792-022-01261-4

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Abstract

The major global and man-made challenges of our time are the fossil fuel-driven climate change a global plastic pollution and rapidly emerging plant, human and animal infections. To meet the necessary global changes, a dramatic transformation must take place in science and society. This transformation will involve very intense and forward oriented industrial and basic research strongly focusing on (bio)technology and industrial bioprocesses developments towards engineering a zero-carbon sustainable bioeconomy. Within this transition microorganisms—and especially extremophiles—will play a significant and global role as technology drivers. They harbor the keys and blueprints to a sustainable biotechnology in their genomes. Within this article, we outline urgent and important areas of microbial research and technology advancements and that will ultimately make major contributions during the transition from a linear towards a circular bioeconomy.

Highlights

The major global and man-made challenges of our time are the fossil fuel-driven climate change (Lelieveld et al 2019, Karl and Trenberth 2003; Cavicchioli et al 2019), a global plastic pollution (Haward 2018) and rapidly emerging plant, human and animal infections (Baker-Austin et al 2017; Anderson et al 2020; Blum and Hotez 2018).One solution that addresses many of these challenges is to master a rapid transition within 20–30 years from a linear economy to a sustainable, biobased circular economy (Fig. 1)
The cultivated and non-cultivated microorganisms harbor an unlimited number of useful biocatalysts and secondary metabolite pathways (Ferrer et al 2016; Streit and Schmitz 2004)
Identifying enzymes acting on polymers, such as PE, PVC, PS, Danso et al (2019), Wei and Zimmermann (2017), Urbanek PA and PU; upscaling and optimizing processes for PET and et al (2018) ester-based PU and epoxy-based polymers

Summary

Introduction

The major global and man-made challenges of our time are the fossil fuel-driven climate change (Lelieveld et al 2019, Karl and Trenberth 2003; Cavicchioli et al 2019), a global plastic pollution (Haward 2018) and rapidly emerging plant, human and animal infections (Baker-Austin et al 2017; Anderson et al 2020; Blum and Hotez 2018). To meet the necessary global changes, a dramatic transformation must take place This transformation will involve very intense and forward oriented industrial and basic research strongly focusing on (bio)technology and industrial bioprocesses developments. Within this transition microorganisms—and especially extremophiles—will play a significant and global role as technology drivers. The cultivated and non-cultivated microorganisms harbor an unlimited number of useful biocatalysts and secondary metabolite pathways (Ferrer et al 2016; Streit and Schmitz 2004) This nearly unlimited natural diversity combined with artificial evolution and engineering technologies (Packer and Liu 2015; Arnold 2018) is the backbone of modern biotechnology and future bioindustries. A high level of innovations is indispensable

The future challenges

Highly accessed reviews and spotlight paper in the field

Identifying probiotic communities or single organisms

Methane removal from the atmosphere

Plastic removal and degradation in marine and terrestrial environments

Designing degradable and durable industry usable biopolymers

Bioelectrodes from bacteria

From biodiversity to the bioeconomy

Findings

Integrated approach and networks