Microbial upcycling of plastic waste to levodopa
Royer B. Era Y. Valenzuela-Ortega M. Thorpe T. Trotter C. Clouston K. Steele J. Zeballos N. Shrimpton-Phoenix E. Eiamthong B. Uttamapinant C. Wood C. Wallace S (2026). Microbial upcycling of plastic waste to levodopa. Nature Sustainability, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-026-01785-z
- Authors
- Benjamin Royer, Yuta Era, Marcos Valenzuela-Ortega, Thomas W. Thorpe, Connor L. Trotter, Kitty Clouston, John F. C. Steele, Nicoll Zeballos, Eugene Shrimpton-Phoenix, Bhumrapee Eiamthong, Chayasith Uttamapinant, Christopher W. Wood, Stephen Wallace
- Journal
- Nature Sustainability
- First published
- 2026
- Number of citations
- 1
- Type
- Journal Article
Abstract
Abstract
Using engineering biology to perform complex chemical synthesis offers a sustainable alternative to traditional processes that rely on finite fossil resources. A growing opportunity within this field lies in reclaiming carbon embedded in industrial and post-consumer waste—carbon otherwise lost to landfill, incineration or pollution. Here we report the bio-upcycling of poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) plastic waste into levodopa (
l
-DOPA), a frontline medication for Parkinson’s disease, using engineered
Escherichia coli
. Two key bottlenecks—substrate import and feedback inhibition by the intermediate protocatechuate—were addressed through heterologous transporter expression and functional pathway separation across two microbial strains. To further improve sustainability, and as a proof-of-concept,
Chlamydomonas reinhardtii
was used to capture CO
2
released during catechol generation. The resulting bioprocess operates under mild, aqueous conditions and achieves high
l
-DOPA titres (5.0 g l
−1
), with isolated product obtained at preparative scale from both industrial PET waste and a single post-consumer plastic bottle. This work demonstrates how engineering biology can transform plastic-derived aromatic monomers into high-value pharmaceuticals for the treatment of neurological disease in humans.