| Plastic plants
may become plastics plants
By transplanting
four genes from bacteria, researchers have produced plants that make a
commercial-grade plastic.
References:
Poirier, Y.
1999. Green chemistry yields a better plastic. Nature Biotechnology
17(October):960.
Slater, S. . . .
and K.J. Gruys. 1999. Metabolic engineering of Arabidopsis and Brassica
for poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) copolymer
production. Nature Biotechnology 17(October):1011.
Further Readings:
Madison, L.L., and
G.W. Huisman. 1999. Metabolic engineering of poly(3-hydroxyalkanoates):
From DNA to plastic. Microbiology and Molecular Biology Review
63(March):21.
Further
information on why plastic from bacteria may not be so green can be
found at http://www.enn.com/news/enn-stories/1999/08/082599/plastic_5245.asp.
Sources:
Kenneth J. Gruys
Monsanto Company
700 Chesterfield Parkway North
St. Louis, MO 63198
Peggy G. Lemaux
University of California, Berkeley
Department of Plant and Microbiological Biology
481A Koshland
Berkeley, CA 94720-3102
From Science
News, Vol. 156, No. 16, October 16, 1999, p. 246. Copyright © 1999,
Science Service. |