The accumulation of plastic waste is a pressing environmental problem, growing hand-in-hand with the rising production and consumption of consumer products. The robustness and intrinsic strength of plastics, which render them extremely useful in various packaging applications, are a double-edged sword as they are likewise highly resistant to degradation and may persist for several millennia. Conventional waste treatment solutions are increasingly unable to manage the growing volume of such waste, bringing us to the brink of ecological disaster. Interestingly, environmental microorganisms are beginning to evolve their own biological means of thriving within such environments through production of metabolic intermediaries that enable them to utilize plastics as energy sources. Here, we present a brief review of the current literature, highlighting various micro- and multicellular organisms that have been found to degrade plastics, as well as propose some strategies for industrialization of these processes in the future.

塑料废料的积累是一个迫在眉睫的环境问题，与消费产品的生产和消费量的增长齐头并进。塑料的坚固性和内在强度使其在各种包装应用中极为有用，是一把双刃剑，因为它们同样具有很高的抗降解性，并且可以持续使用数千年。传统的废物处理解决方案越来越无法管理日益增加的此类废物，使我们濒临生态灾难。有趣的是，环境微生物开始通过产生代谢中间体来发展其自身在此类环境中繁衍的生物学手段，从而使它们能够利用塑料作为能源。在这里，我们简要回顾一下当前的文献，