Host metabolic integration enables superior polystyrene degradation in cockroachesOA
Plastic pollution is a global crisis,with polystyrene(PS)among the most recalcitrant polymers owing to its stable aromatic structure and resistance to natural degradation.Although insect larvae such as mealworms and wax moth caterpillars can partially biodegrade PS through gut microbiota,reported rates remain low(0.08-0.24 mg per individual per day).The potential of cockroaches—with more stable gut microbiomes,longer lifespans,and greater biomass—for efficient,scalable plastic bioremediation has remained unexplored.Here we show that Blaptica dubia cockroaches rapidly biodegrade PS microplastics via a tightly integrated host-microbiota enzymatic network.Individuals ingested 6.0±0.2 mg PS daily,achieving 54.9±2.3%mass loss over 42 days and a specific biodegradation rate of 3.3±0.1 mg per cockroach per day.Biodegradation was confirmed by substantial molecular-weight reductions(Mn 46.4%,Mw 25.9%)and isotopic mineralization signatures.PS exposure selectively enriched plastic-degrading taxa and enzymes while strongly upregulating host fatty-acidβ-oxidation and tricarboxylic acid cycle pathways,enabling the host to directly metabolize microbial cleavage products and reconstruct a complete PS catabolic pathway.These findings reveal that B.dubia can far outperform other insects in plastic biodegradation through evolved metabolic cooperation,expanding the biological repertoire for tackling persistent anthropogenic polymers and offering new insight into insect adaptation to synthetic substrates in the Anthropocene.
Mei-Xi Li;Yu-Qian Wang;Jia-Yi Wang;Meng-Qi Ding;Shan-Shan Yang;Jie Ding;Wei-Min Wu
National Engineering Research Center for Safe Disposal and Resources Recovery of Sludge,Harbin Institute of Technology,Harbin,150090,China State Key Laboratory of Urban-rural Water Resource and Environment,School of Environment,Harbin Institute of Technology,Harbin,150090,ChinaNational Engineering Research Center for Safe Disposal and Resources Recovery of Sludge,Harbin Institute of Technology,Harbin,150090,ChinaNational Engineering Research Center for Safe Disposal and Resources Recovery of Sludge,Harbin Institute of Technology,Harbin,150090,ChinaNational Engineering Research Center for Safe Disposal and Resources Recovery of Sludge,Harbin Institute of Technology,Harbin,150090,ChinaNational Engineering Research Center for Safe Disposal and Resources Recovery of Sludge,Harbin Institute of Technology,Harbin,150090,China State Key Laboratory of Urban-rural Water Resource and Environment,School of Environment,Harbin Institute of Technology,Harbin,150090,ChinaNational Engineering Research Center for Safe Disposal and Resources Recovery of Sludge,Harbin Institute of Technology,Harbin,150090,China State Key Laboratory of Urban-rural Water Resource and Environment,School of Environment,Harbin Institute of Technology,Harbin,150090,ChinaDepartment of Civil and Environmental Engineering,William&Cloy Codiga Resource Recovery Center,Stanford University,Stanford,CA,94305,USA
资源环境
Blaptica dubiaPolystyreneBiodegradationGut microbiotaEnzymes
《Environmental Science and Ecotechnology》 2026 (2)
P.30-43,14
the Science Foundation of the National Engineering Research Center for Safe Disposal and Resources Recovery of Sludge(Harbin Institute of Technology)(No.K2024A007)the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant No.52170131)the State Key Laboratory of Urban-rural Water Resource and Environment(Harbin Institute of Technology)(No.2025TS44).
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