Paracetamol production could be revolutionised by the discovery that a common bacterium can turn everyday plastic waste into the painkiller, a new study reveals.
The new method, using engineering biology techniques, leaves virtually no carbon emissions and is more sustainable than the current production of the medicine, researchers say.
A team of scientists from the University of Edinburgh’s Wallace Lab used genetically reprogrammed E. coli, a harmless bacterium, to transform a molecule derived from polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic, known as terephthalic acid, into the active ingredient of paracetamol.
Researchers used a fermentation process, similar to the one used in brewing beer, to accelerate the conversion from industrial PET waste into paracetamol in less than 24 hours.
The new technique was carried out at room temperature and created virtually no carbon emissions, proving that paracetamol can be produced sustainably.
Paracetamol is traditionally made from dwindling supplies of fossil fuels including crude oil. Thousands of tons of fossil fuels are used annually to power the factories that produce the painkiller.
Professor Stephen Wallace, UKRI Future Leaders Fellow and Chair of Chemical Biotechnology, at the University of Edinburgh’s School of Biological Sciences, who led the research, said:
This work demonstrates that PET plastic isn’t just waste or a material destined to become more plastic – it can be transformed by microorganisms into valuable new products, including those with potential for treating disease. ”
The breakthrough addresses the urgent need to recycle PET plastic - used for water bottles and food packaging. This plastic produces 350 million tons of waste per year, much of which ultimately ends up in landfill or polluting oceans.
PET recycling is possible, but existing processes create products that continue to contribute to plastic pollution worldwide, researchers say.
Some 90 per cent of the product made from reacting terephthalic acid with genetically reprogrammed E. coli was paracetamol.
Further development is needed before it can be produced at commercial levels, the team says.
Ian Hatch, Edinburgh Innovations' Head of Business Development for the College of Science and Engineering, said:
We are bringing in exceptional companies like AstraZeneca to work with Stephen and others at the University to translate these cutting-edge discoveries into innovations that can change lives.
To support scale-up, we also have world-leading facilities such as the Edinburgh Genome Foundry, for automated DNA assembly.
Engineering biology offers immense potential to disrupt our reliance on fossil fuels, build a circular economy and create sustainable chemicals and materials, and we would invite potential collaborators to get in touch. ”
The research, published in Nature Chemistry, was funded by an EPSRC CASE award and biopharmaceutical company AstraZeneca.
