Efficient biodegradation of polyethylene (HDPE) waste by the plastic-eating lesser waxworm (Achroia grisella)

Microbial Degradation and Valorization of Plastic Wastes

“…Notably, a few studies reported that the waxworms, possessing an inherent ability to feed on and digest beeswax, could chew, and eat PE films (Yang et al, 2014;Bombelli et al, 2017;Chalup et al, 2018;Kundungal et al, 2019). The biodegradation of PE has been detected through contact with the homogenate of the waxworm Galleria mellonella (Bombelli et al, 2017) or after passage through the gut of the lesser waxworm Achroia grisella (Kundungal et al, 2019), according to the changes in chemical compositions characterized by the analyses of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). However, further investigations are necessitated in order to determine whether the depolymerization of PE has occurred in the waxworm gut.…”

Evaluation of the Biodegradation Efficiency of Four Various Types of Plastics by Pseudomonas aeruginosa Isolated from the Gut Extract of Superworms

“…Recently, several plastic-ingesting worms capable of removing plastic wastes have been reported, including waxworms ( Galleria mellonella L.), mealworms ( Tenebrio molitor L.) and superworms ( Zophobas atratus L.), which can depolymerize polyethylene (PE) and polystyrene (PS) upon ingestion [ 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 ]. Further studies have shown that treatment with antibiotic compounds to remove gut bacteria within the worms significantly reduces the biodegradation efficiency with respect to ingested PE and PS, suggesting that gut bacteria participate in plastic biodegradation in these worms [ 9 , 10 , 15 ].…”

Towards an ecology of soil microplastics

“…T. molitor was also found to be able to biodegrade polyethylene in much the same manner (Brandon et al, ). Kundungal et al () fed polyethylene film alone or with beeswax to larvae of the lesser wax moth Achroia grisella and observed partial biodegradation, with some of the plastic excreted in faeces. As with microbes, the studies demonstrating plastic biodegradation in insects have been primarily laboratory‐based, yet these species still consume plastic even when also given more natural foods (Kundungal et al, ), as has been done in efforts to optimize insect‐based biodegradation technologies by improving insect health (Yang, Chen, et al, ; Yang, Wu, et al, ).…”

“…Kundungal et al () fed polyethylene film alone or with beeswax to larvae of the lesser wax moth Achroia grisella and observed partial biodegradation, with some of the plastic excreted in faeces. As with microbes, the studies demonstrating plastic biodegradation in insects have been primarily laboratory‐based, yet these species still consume plastic even when also given more natural foods (Kundungal et al, ), as has been done in efforts to optimize insect‐based biodegradation technologies by improving insect health (Yang, Chen, et al, ; Yang, Wu, et al, ). Given insects’ staggering taxonomic diversity (Stork, McBroom, Gely, & Hamilton, ), this ability likely exists in additional insect species, and perhaps other soil arthropods and invertebrates, such as earthworms (Huerta Lwanga et al, ).…”

“…Yet, the particles themselves could also be subject to further fragmentation and/or biodegradation by the animals and their gut microbiota, to the end of altering the size and shape of existing microplastics or generating new particles from larger plastic debris. So far, true in vivo biodegradation has only been found in a few insect species, namely tenebrionid beetle larvae (Peng et al, ; Yang et al, ) and pyralid moth larvae (Bombelli, Howe, & Bertocchini, ; Kundungal, Gangarapu, Sarangapani, Patchaiyappan, & Devipriya, ; Yang, Yang, Wu, Zhao, & Jiang, ), the latter of which are not soil‐dwellers. Yellow mealworm Tenebrio molitor larvae ingested polystyrene; approximately half the mass was mineralized as CO 2 , a small percentage was incorporated into biomass, and the rest degraded into depolymerized molecules or smaller plastic fragments and excreted in faeces (Yang et al, ).…”