Accumulation of plastic wastes and their effects on the ecosystem have triggered an alarm regarding environmental damage, which explains the massive investigations over the past few years, aiming technological alternatives for their proper destination and valorization. In this context, biological degradation emerges as a green route for plastic processing and recycling in a circular economy approach. Some of the main polymers produced worldwide are poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET), polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), which are among the most recalcitrant materials in the environment. In comparison to other polymers, PET biodegradation has advanced dramatically in recent years concerning microbial and enzymatic mechanisms, being positioned in a higher technology readiness level (TRL). Even more challenging, polyolefins (PE and PP) biodegradation is hindered by their high recalcitrance, which is mainly related to stable carbon-carbon bonds. Potential microbial biocatalysts for this process have been evaluated, but the related mechanisms are still not fully elucidated. This review aims to discuss the latest developments on key microbial biocatalysts for degradation of these polymers, addressing biodegradation monitoring, intellectual property, and TRL analysis of the bioprocessing strategies using biodegradation performance, process time and scale as parameters for the evaluation.

塑料废物的积累及其对生态系统的影响引发了有关环境破坏的警报，这解释了过去几年进行的大规模调查，旨在寻找技术替代品以实现其适当的目的地和价值。在此背景下，生物降解成为循环经济方法中塑料加工和回收的绿色途径。世界范围内生产的一些主要聚合物是聚对苯二甲酸乙二醇酯 (PET)、聚乙烯 (PE) 和聚丙烯 (PP)，它们是环境中最顽固的材料。与其他聚合物相比，近年来 PET 生物降解在微生物和酶促机制方面取得了显着进步，处于更高的技术准备水平 (TRL)。更有挑战性的是，聚烯烃（PE 和 PP）的生物降解受到其高顽固性的阻碍，这主要与稳定的碳 - 碳键有关。已经评估了用于该过程的潜在微生物生物催化剂，但相关机制仍未完全阐明。本综述旨在讨论用于降解这些聚合物的关键微生物生物催化剂的最新进展，解决生物降解监测、知识产权和使用生物降解性能、处理时间和规模作为评估参数的生物处理策略的 TRL 分析。