Waste Not, Want Not: Scientists Turn Plastic Into Levodopa for Parkinson’s Disease

In a scientific first, researchers have turned plastic waste into a mainstay treatment for Parkinson’s disease (PD).

In a proof-of-concept study, researchers used engineered bacteria to convert polyethylene terephthalate (PET) — a widely used plastic found in bottles and food packaging — into levodopa (L-DOPA).

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Significant work remains before the process could contribute to pharmaceutical supply chains.

“I think the main hurdle that we face right now is scalability,” Wallace said. “Taking the process from where it is now in a small tube in a research laboratory to a full-scale bioreactor where we’re actually making productive quantities of this is not an easy task.”

A fascinating report – one hopes that the early promise can produce significant production results. My father suffered from Parkinsons the last decades of his life. I’m thankful that researchers continue to seek to advance treatments for the disease.

Don Johnson