These bacteria eat plastic | Morgan Vague

Transcriber: Ivana Korom Reviewer: Joanna Pietrulewicz

翻译人员: Buyun Ping 校对人员: jacks peng

Plastics: you know about them, you may not love them,

塑料——你们了解塑料， 你们也许不喜欢塑料，

but chances are you use them every single day.

但事实是你们每天都要用到它。

By 2050, researchers estimate

据研究人员估计，到2050年，

that there will be more plastic in the ocean than fish.

海洋中塑料的数量将超过鱼类。

Despite our best efforts,

尽管我们非常努力，

only nine percent of all plastic we use winds up being recycled.

我们用过的塑料中 仅有9%被回收利用。

And even worse,

更糟糕的是，

plastic is incredibly tough and durable

塑料十分牢固，经久耐用，

and researchers estimate

据研究人员估计，

that it can take anywhere from 500 to 5,000 years

可能需要500到5000年，

to fully break down.

这些塑料才会分解。

It leaches harmful chemical contaminants into our oceans, our soil,

它释放有毒化学成分 进入海洋、土壤，

our food, our water, and into us.

进入我们的食物、我们的水源， 最终被我们吸收。

So how did we wind up with so much plastic waste?

那么我们是如何制造出 这么多塑料垃圾的呢？

Well, it's simple.

很简单。

Plastic is cheap, durable, adaptable, and it's everywhere.

塑料廉价耐用，用处广， 而且到处都是。

But the good news is

好消息是，

there's something else that's cheap, durable, adaptable and everywhere.

还有一样东西，同样廉价耐用， 用处广，而且到处都是。

And my research shows it may even be able to help us

我的研究表明， 它也许可以帮助我们

with our plastic pollution problem.

解决塑料污染问题。

I'm talking about bacteria.

我要说的是细菌。

Bacteria are microscopic living beings invisible to the naked eye

细菌是肉眼不可见的微生物，

that live everywhere,

它到处都是，

in all sorts of diverse and extreme environments,

存在于多样和极端的环境中，

from the human gut, to soil, to skin,

存在于人类肠道、土壤和皮肤，

to vents in the ocean floor, reaching temperatures of 700 degrees Fahrenheit.

存在于温度高达700 华氏度的海底火山口。

Bacteria live everywhere,

细菌无处不在，

in all sorts of diverse and extreme environments.

存在于多样和极端的环境中。

And as such, they have to get pretty creative with their food sources.

正因如此，它们的 食物来源同样丰富多彩。

There's also a lot of them.

它们的种类也很丰富。

Researchers estimate that there are roughly five million trillion trillion --

研究人员估计在地球上 有5百万兆兆——

that's a five with 30 zeros after it -- bacteria on the planet.

5后面有30个零—— 的细菌存在。

Now, considering that we humans produce

考虑到我们人类每年

300 million tons of new plastic each year,

都会生产3亿吨塑料，

I'd say that our plastic numbers

我想说我们生产的塑料数量

are looking pretty comparable to bacteria's.

和细菌数量有的一拼。

So, after noticing this

所以，意识到这点，

and after learning about all of the creative ways

以及学习了细菌的

that bacteria find food,

所有食物来源后，

I started to think:

我开始想：

could bacteria in plastic-polluted environments

生活在塑料污染环境下的细菌，

have figured out how to use plastic for food?

是否进化出了吃塑料的能力呢？

Well, this is the question that I decided to pursue a couple of years ago.

几年前我决定仔细研究这个问题。

Now, fortunately for me,

幸运的是，

I'm from one of the most polluted cities in America,

我出身于美国污染 最严重的城市之一，

Houston, Texas.

德州休斯顿。

(Laughs)

（笑声）

In my hometown alone,

仅仅在我家乡，

there are seven EPA-designated Superfund sites.

就有7所环境保护局指定的 超级基金污染场址。

These are sites that are so polluted,

这些场所的污染之严重，

that the government has deemed their cleanup a national priority.

政府甚至将对它们的清洁工作 列为全国优先项目。

So I decided to trek around to these sites

我决定到这些场所去，

and collect soil samples teeming with bacteria.

收集一些富含细菌的土壤样本。

I started toying with a protocol,

我开始摆弄一个原型机，

which is fancy science talk for a recipe.

它就等同于科学界的食谱。

And what I was trying to cook up was a carbon-free media,

我想“烹饪”出的是无碳媒介，

or a food-free environment.

或是没有食物的环境。

An environment without the usual carbons, or food,

一个没有常见的碳， 也没有食物的环境，

that bacteria, like us humans, need to live.

而细菌，像人类一样， 也需要生存下去。

Now, in this environment,

在这个环境中，

I would provide my bacteria with a sole carbon, or food, source.

我将为细菌提供唯一的碳， 或者可以说食物、资源。

I would feed my bacteria polyethylene terephthalate,

我将为它们提供 聚对苯二甲酸乙二酯，

or PET plastic.

也就是俗称的PET塑料。

PET plastic is the most widely produced plastic in the world.

PET塑料是世界上 产量最大的塑料。

It's used in all sorts of food and drink containers,

它被用于制作所有的 食物和液体容器，

with the most notorious example being plastic water bottles,

最著名的例子莫过于塑料水瓶，

of which we humans currently go through at a rate of one million per minute.

人类每分钟都要使用 一百万的塑料水瓶。

So, what I would be doing,

我要做的事情，

is essentially putting my bacteria on a forced diet of PET plastic

是迫使细菌以PET塑料为食，

and seeing which, if any, might survive or, hopefully, thrive.

并且观察是否有细菌能活下来， 或者更进一步，繁荣生长。

See, this type of experiment would act as a screen

这种实验

能给已经适应塑料污染场所 环境的细菌提供庇护所，

for bacteria that had adapted to their plastic-polluted environment

and evolved the incredibly cool ability to eat PET plastic.

并且让它们发展消耗 PET塑料的能力。

And using this screen,

利用这个场所，

I was able to find some bacteria that had done just that.

我发现了一些已经具备 这种能力的细菌。

These bacteria had figured out how to eat PET plastic.

这些细菌进化出了以 PET塑料为食的能力。

So how do these bacteria do this?

那么它们具体是怎么做的呢？

Well, it's actually pretty simple.

这其实很简单。

Just as we humans digest carbon or food into chunks of sugar

如同人类消化碳或食物，

that we then use for energy,

转化为能量来源葡萄糖那样，

so too do my bacteria.

我的细菌也是这么做的。

My bacteria, however, have figured out how to do this digestion process

不同的是，我的细菌进化出了

to big, tough, durable PET plastic.

消化大型、牢固耐用的 PET塑料的方法。

Now, to do this, my bacteria use a special version

为了达成这点，我的细菌会 利用一个特殊的物品，

of what's called an enzyme.

叫作酶。

Now, enzymes are simply compounds that exist in all living things.

酶是一种简单的化合物， 存在于所有生命体中。

There are many different types of enzymes,

酶有很多种类，

but basically, they make processes go forward,

但基本上，它们的功能是促进过程，

such as the digestion of food into energy.

例如将食物转化为能量的过程。

For instance, we humans have an enzyme called an amylase

举个例子，人体内有一种 叫作淀粉酶的东西，

that helps us digest complex starches, such as bread,

能够帮助我们消化淀粉，如面包，

into small chunks of sugar that we can then use for energy.

并转化为小分子葡萄糖， 用以提供能量。

Now, my bacteria have a special enzyme called a lipase

我的细菌有一种特殊的酶， 叫作脂肪酶，

that binds to big, tough, durable PET plastic

这种酶能附着在大型 牢固耐用的PET塑料上，

and helps break it into small chunks of sugar

并且将它分解成小分子的葡萄糖，

that my bacteria can then use for energy.

我的细菌就可以将其作为能量来源。

So basically,

基本上，

PET plastic goes from being a big, tough, long-lasting pollutant

PET塑料从大型、 牢固而持久的污染，

to a tasty meal for my bacteria.

变成了我的细菌口中的美餐。

Sounds pretty cool, right?

听起来很棒，不是吗？

And I think, given the current scope of our plastic pollution problem,

并且我认为，考虑到现在 塑料污染的规模问题，

I think it sounds pretty useful.

我认为这听起来非常实用。

The statistics I shared with you

那些我分享给你们的

on just how much plastic waste has accumulated on our planet

关于我们星球上有 多少塑料垃圾的数据

are daunting.

骇人听闻。

They're scary.

它们让人感到害怕。

And I think they highlight

并且我认为它们还指出，

that while reducing, reusing and recycling are important,

尽管减少使用、再次利用 和回收非常重要，

they alone are not going to be enough to solve this problem.

但仅通过这些方法是 不足以解决这个问题的。

And this is where I think bacteria might be able to help us out.

我认为细菌也许能够帮助我们。

But I do understand why the concept of bacterial help

但我能理解为什么

有些人听到利用细菌会紧张。

might make some people a little nervous.

After all, if plastic is everywhere and these bacteria eat plastic,

毕竟，如果塑料到处都是， 而这些细菌会吃塑料，

isn't there a risk of these bacteria getting out in the environment

这些细菌会不会流入环境，

and wreaking havoc?

造成破坏呢？

Well, the short answer is no, and I'll tell you why.

答案是否定的，让我来解释给你听。

These bacteria are already in the environment.

这些细菌本身就存在于环境中。

The bacteria in my research are not genetically modified frankenbugs.

我实验中使用的细菌 不是转基因的人造虫。

These are naturally occurring bacteria

它们是自然存在的细菌，

that have simply adapted to their plastic-polluted environment

只是它们适应了塑料污染的环境，

and evolved the incredibly gnarly ability to eat PET plastic.

并且进化出了极端而不可思议的 消化塑料的能力。

So the process of bacteria eating plastic is actually a natural one.

所以细菌消化塑料 事实上是自然的过程。

But it's an incredibly slow process.

但这个过程非常缓慢。

And there remains a lot of work to be done

并且还需要投入大量工作，

to figure out how to speed up this process to a useful pace.

研究如何加快进程速度， 让它能够发挥作用。

My research is currently looking at ways of doing this

我的研究现在正通过进行 一系列紫外线预处理

through a series of UV, or ultraviolet, pretreatments,

来寻找这样的方法，

which basically means we blast PET plastic with sunlight.

这基本上意味着我们将 PET塑料置于阳光暴晒下，

We do this because sunlight acts a bit like tenderizer on a steak,

我们这么做，就像把肉弄嫩一样，

turning the big, tough, durable bonds in PET plastic

阳光会使得PET塑料中 大块、坚硬耐用的联结软化，

a bit softer and a bit easier for my bacteria to chew on.

方便我的细菌进食。

Ultimately, what my research hopes to do

最终，我研究的目的，

is create an industrial-scale contained carbon-free system,

是为了创造出产业级别的 独立无碳系统，

similar to a compost heap,

如同肥料堆那样，

where these bacteria can thrive in a contained system,

在那里，细菌可以在 独立系统中繁荣发展，

where their sole food source is PET plastic waste.

它们的唯一食物是PET塑料垃圾。

Imagine one day being able to dispose of all of your plastic waste

想象有一天，你可以 把你所有的塑料垃圾

in a bin at the curb

扔进马路边的一个垃圾桶，

that you knew was bound for a dedicated bacteria-powered plastic waste facility.

而你知道这个垃圾桶是专门的 细菌消耗塑料垃圾装置。

I think with some hard work this is an achievable reality.

我认为通过努力， 我们可以实现这个目标。

Plastic-eating bacteria is not a cure-all.

以塑料为食的细菌并不能解决一切。

But given the current statistics, it's clear that we humans,

但考虑到现实状况，很明显我们人类

we could use a little help with this problem.

在这个问题上需要一些帮助。

Because people,

因为对于我们人类而言，

we possess a pressing problem of plastic pollution.

塑料污染问题迫在眉睫。

And bacteria might be a really important part of the solution.

细菌也许能为解决问题 做出很大贡献。

Thank you.

谢谢你们。

(Applause)

（掌声）