Complete bio-degradation of poly(butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) via engineered cutinases

Poly(butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) (PBAT), a polyester made of terephthalic acid (TPA), 1,4-butanediol, and adipic acid, is extensively utilized in plastic production and has accumulated globally as environmental waste. Biodegradation is an attractive strategy to manage PBAT, but an effective PBAT-degrading enzyme is required. Here, we demonstrate that cutinases are highly potent enzymes that can completely decompose PBAT films in 48 h. We further show that the engineered cutinases, by applying a double mutation strategy to render a more flexible substrate-binding pocket exhibit higher decomposition rates. Notably, these variants produce TPA as a major end-product, which is beneficial feature for the…

• NN
  National Natural Science Foundation of China

  Awards: 32271318, 32101016, 81871251, 2019YFA0706900
• NS
  Natural Science Foundation of Hubei Province

  Awards: 2022CFB360, 2020CFA011, 2022hszd030
• NK
  National Key Research and Development Program of China

  Awards: 2018YFE0204503, 2022YFE0135300, 2019YFA0706900, 2021YFC2104000