Rapid screening and phylogenetic analysis of plastic-oxidizing Bacillus relatives from agricultural soil

Authors: OLABEMIWO, FATAI - Wesleyan University; HUANG, YUTING - Wesleyan University; THOMPSON, MACY - Wesleyan University; OMAR, HANAN - Wesleyan University; FRANKEL, QUINN - Wesleyan University; BASHAW, THADDEUS - Wesleyan University; KUNNEY, CLAUDIA - Wesleyan University; RYAN, SAVANNAH - Wesleyan University; KRAUT, KENDALL - Wesleyan University; EDWARDS, CIAREN - Wesleyan University; ASANTE, HILDA - Wesleyan University; AREVALO, PHILIP - Wesleyan University; Dunlap, Christopher; COHAN, FREDERICK - Wesleyan University

Submitted to: Annals of Microbiology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/22/2025
Publication Date: 11/13/2025
Citation: Olabemiwo, F.A., Huang, Y., Thompson, M., Omar, H., Frankel, Q., Bashaw, T., Kunney, C., Ryan, S., Kraut, K., Edwards, C., Asante, H., Arevalo, P., Dunlap, C.A., Cohan, F.M. 2025. Rapid screening and phylogenetic analysis of plastic-oxidizing Bacillus relatives from agricultural soil . Annals of Microbiology. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13213-025-01826-6.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s13213-025-01826-6

Interpretive Summary: Plastic pollution poses a significant environmental and health threat, necessitating efficient bioremediation strategies. The goal of this study was to identify and characterize microbial resources for mitigating plastic pollution in agricultural soils. The study identified bacterial species from genus Bacillus that are capable of degrading polyethylene, a commonly used type of plastic. Future research is needed to better understand how these bacteria could be harnessed in bioremediation of plastic pollution. This research benefits agricultural producers and consumers by identifying ways to reduce plastic pollution in agricultural systems.

Technical Abstract: Plastic pollution poses a significant environmental and health threat, necessitating efficient bioremediation strategies. We employed a modified Winogradsky column to enrich plastic-degrading bacteria from agricultural soil, focusing on polyethylene (PE) degradation. We isolated biofilms attached to PE strips at different oxygen layers and tested their oxygen requirements using thioglycolate broth. Ten isolates of Bacillus and closely related genera were genome-sequenced and exposed to plastic and noplastic environments under aerobic and anaerobic conditions. We utilized a tetrazolium assay to assess the plastic-oxidizing ability of these strains. Our results demonstrated significant differences in plasticoxidizing ability among Bacillus relatives. We observed that closely related species often shared similar plastic-oxidizing abilities, in both the presence and absence of oxygen, suggesting that plastic-oxidizing ability has evolved a small number of times. We also observed some exceptions to this pattern, which indicate potential independent evolution or horizontal gene transfer of degradation capabilities. This study contributes to understanding of the distribution of plastic degradation capabilities among Bacillus relatives and highlights the importance of considering both aerobic and anaerobic conditions in bioremediation applications.