A caterpillar¹ that munches² on plastic bags could hold the key to tackling plastic pollution, scientists say.

 

科学家们称，一种吃塑料袋的毛虫或可成为解决塑料污染的关键。

 

Researchers at Cambridge University have discovered that the larvae³ of the moth⁴, which eats wax in bee hives, can also degrade plastic.

 

Experiments show the insect can break down the chemical bonds of plastic in a similar way to digesting beeswax.

 

Each year, about 80 million tonnes of the plastic polyethylene are produced around the world.

 

The plastic is used to make shopping bags and food packaging, among other things, but it can take hundreds of years to decompose⁵ completely.

 

However, caterpillars⁶ of the moth (Galleria mellonella) can make holes in a plastic bag in under an hour.

 

Dr Paolo Bombelli is a biochemist at the University of Cambridge and one of the researchers on the study.

 

Dr Bombelli and colleague Federica Bertocchini of the Spanish National Research Council have patented the discovery.

 

They want to speed up the process of discovering the chemical secrets behind the natural degradation⁷ of plastic.

 

They think microbes in the caterpillar - as well as the insect itself - might play a role in breaking down plastic.

 

If the chemical process can be identified, it could lead to a solution to managing plastic waste in the environment.

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