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Scientists issue dire warning: Microplastic accumulation in human brains escalating
(www.psypost.org)
this post was submitted on 12 Mar 2025
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I am longing for plastic-eating bacteria to be released into the wild. There are other materials we can use.
The medical field would be categorically fuct. Just the loss of sterile packaging would have serious consequences. Minimally invasive surgeries, joint replacements, bandages that don't adhere to wounds, stents...
Then let's consider cordage. Mountain climbing, arborists, rescue teams, sailboats (the most efficient way to cross oceans), ships, construction... the loss of just Dyneema/UHMWPE, which is a relatively new entrant to the cordage field would have seriously negative impacts.
There is a lot of energy bound up in those long molecules, and there are no unexploited niches in balanced ecosystems. There are already bacteria that can consume certain polymers under narrow conditions. Humanity is gonna be so screwed for a long time if bacteria can slip those narrow parameters.
Like what? If you're building an airplane or a sewer main all substitutes are inferior. The problem is that we're using the ultra-permanent wonder material for, like, candy wrappers.
Think of how many things around you are made of plastic. What about critical pieces of things like airplanes? What would you replace that with to prevent the bacteria from causing damage to them?
I could probably pick a few things on my desk right now that would be much more difficult and much more costly to produce with other materials.
Yes, I am sure such a bacteria being released at this scale would have absolutely zero negative consequences
As opposed to the alternative?
implying there are only two possible options that could ever be imagined is not interesting
I would like for you to meet my friend, the oyster mushroom. I'm wondering what level of soil accumulation we need to support massive, city-wide oyster mushroom blooms
There are plastic eating microorganisms, both fungi, and bacteria.
But, they take a long time to break down plastic. I've had a fungus that can digest plastic in a mushroom cultivation bag for nine months and only one specimen has made it through so far.
I imagine splicing the gene that allows for the production of this enzyme into an ocean bound microorganism would clean up a lot of it while not affecting most of our terristrial infrastructure.
Of course, folks put plastic tubing and what not in the ocean too, so I guess we'll all have to die instead.
We first need a way to use them to consume plastic in a controlled manner. There are things that simply would not be possible without these polymers and that we do not want destroyed.