Bioremediation articles from across Nature Portfolio

A comprehensive study on the identification and characterization of PETase-like enzymes in Streptomyces indicates the presence of strain specific variants of a conserved BHET-degrading esterase.

The way we generate and treat plastic waste is a key consideration in the transition from a take-make-waste model to a truly circular economy. Here, authors discuss their views on how biotechnology could contribute to solving the plastic problem, and the barriers we need to overcome to make such approaches a reality.

Microbial degradation and biosynthesis of fluorinated compounds is a field of increasing importance, but is hampered by the significant toxicity of fluoride. Here authors discuss emerging ideas on microbial defluorination/fluorination and fluoride resistance mechanisms, providing guidance on how this knowledge can guide future bioengineering approaches.

Engineered living materials (ELMs) are emerging as a field at the intersection of materials science and synthetic biology. Here, the authors describe a photosynthetic ELM composed of genetically engineered cyanobacteria in a hydrogel matrix, capable of bioremediation and inducible cell death.

Wu et al. provide mechanistic insight into how the plant symbiotic fungus Metarhizium robertsii can reduce mercury accumulation in soil.

The lack of innovative standards for biosafety in synthetic biology is an unresolved policy gap that limits many potential applications in synthetic biology. We argue that a massive support for standardization in biosafety is required for synthetic biology to flourish.

A study investigating the microbiome of contaminated soil finds that auxilliary metabolic genes of viruses contribute to pesticide degradation.