Phys.org  June 28, 2024 Researchers in the Netherlands identified an organic compound BHET (Bis(2-Hydroxyethyl) terephthalate) and identified and characterized an enzyme (LipA), which could degrade the PET-derived oligomer BHET. The enzyme exhibited varying sequence similarity to several BHETase/PETase enzymes. SclipA was deleted from S. coelicolor resulting in reduced BHET degradation. Overexpression of all LipA variants significantly enhanced BHET degradation. The optimum conditions were determined as pH 7 and 25 °C for all variants. The activity on BHET and amorphous PET film was investigated. S2LipA efficiently degraded BHET and caused roughening and indents on the surface of PET films, comparable to […]