Scientists Found Superworms That Love Eating Styrofoam, And It Could Be a Good Thing

Polystyrene is one of the most common forms of plastic, but it isn't easy to recycle and the majority ends up in the ocean.

Scientists at Australia's University of Queensland have discovered that superworms, the larvae of Zophobas morio darkling beetles, are interested in eating the substance and could hold the key to a higher recycling rate.

Chris Rinke told Agence France-Presse that previous reports had shown that tiny waxworms and mealworms had a good track record when it came to eating plastic.

Superworms grow up to two inches (five centimeters) and are bred as a food source for animals and humans in countries such as Thailand and Mexico.

Superworms were fed different diet over a three week period, with some and others not being fed at all.

He said that the worms can gain energy from eating polystyrene and that they can survive on a sole polystyrene diet.

A worm has polystyrene in it's guts. There is a university at the University ofQueensland.

Although the polystyrene-reared superworms completed their life cycle, becoming pupae and then fully developed adult beetles, tests showed a loss of diversity in their guts.

While the bugs can survive on polystyrene, it's not a good diet and can impact their health.

The team used metagenomics to find out which genes were involved in degrading the plastic.

Bio-upcycling

Superworms with food waste or agricultural bioproducts would be a good way to use the findings.

According to Rinke, this could be a way to improve the health of the worms and to deal with the large amount of food waste in Western countries.

While breeding more worms for this purpose is possible, he wants to create plants that will shred plastic in their mouths and then digest it through their gut flora.

He wants to take the superworms out of the equation, and he plans to find the most efficient enzymes, then enhance them further.

The breakdown products from that reaction could be fed to other microbes to create high value compounds, such as bioplastics, in an economically viable "upcycling" approach.

Agence France- Presse.