Discovering and Deploying Evolution's Solutions for Microplastic Degradation

Microplastics represent an emerging global health crisis, with nearly 500 million people directly impacted worldwide. Current solutions for plastic waste management are inadequate, with degradation into microplastics (<5mm) and nanoplastics (<1μm) creating pervasive contamination. These particles have been detected in human tissues including the brain, gut, arteries, placenta, and breast milk, with evidence linking them to inflammatory conditions, hormone disruption, and increased disease risk.The EnzyMiner project aims to revolutionize microplastic remediation by leveraging computational genomics to discover and optimize highly efficient plastic-degrading enzymes. Building on our ERC CoG project IndexThePlanet, we have developed a highly optimized search engine for enzyme discovery across the world’s most comprehensive genomic datasets. Our preliminary work has yielded several candidate plastic-degrading enzymes with activity superior to the current gold standard.This PoC grant will establish three critical pillars for commercialization: (1) a demonstration of our sequence mining methodology with experimental validation of synthesized candidate enzymes; (2) a regulatory pathway strategy for enzyme deployment in environmental and consumer applications; and (3) a consolidated IP strategy and startup creation plan. The results will create a robust foundation for bringing this breakthrough technology to market, offering transformative solutions to microplastic pollution across multiple industries while safeguarding human health.