Researchers have made a breakthrough in developing an enzyme that can digest plastics, overcoming one of the biggest challenges in biodegrading synthetic materials. The new enzyme was designed using AI-driven protein design and has the potential to break down ester bonds, a common feature in many plastic polymers.
Ester bonds are formed by linking two chains of carbon atoms with an oxygen atom. Breaking these bonds requires adding a water molecule, resulting in one chain linked to an alcohol group and the other to an organic acid group. Enzymes have long been used to manipulate ester bonds in biological systems, but there is currently no enzyme that can break down ester bonds in plastics.
The development of this new enzyme marks a significant step forward in understanding how enzymes work. The research team discovered that even simple enzymes can have complex mechanisms that are difficult to tackle with current AI tools. Despite these challenges, the design and creation of this new enzyme demonstrate the potential for AI-driven protein design to revolutionize biodegradation.
This breakthrough has far-reaching implications for the environment, as it could help mitigate the growing problem of plastic pollution. While there is still much work to be done, the development of this enzyme brings us closer to finding solutions to this pressing issue.
Source: https://arstechnica.com/science/2025/02/using-ai-to-design-proteins-is-now-easy-making-enzymes-remains-hard