Yinglu Cui

Editor’s summary There have been major advances recently in the discovery and engineering of hydrolase enzymes for degradation of ester linkages in polymers such as polyethylene terephthalate. However, more resistant chemical linkages, such as those found in urethane polymers, present additional challenges. Chen et al. developed a computational pipeline for screening enzymes with potential activity and identified a highly active urethanase.

Abstract Biotechnological plastic recycling has emerged as a suitable option for addressing the pollution crisis. A major breakthrough in the biodegradation of poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) is achieved by using a LCC variant, which permits 90% conversion at an industrial level. Despite the achievements, its applications have been hampered by the remaining 10% of nonbiodegradable PET.

Abstract Predicting free energy changes (∆∆G) is of paramount significance in advancing our comprehension of protein evolution and holds profound implications for protein engineering and pharmaceutical development. Traditional methods, however, often suffer from limitations such as sluggish computational speed or heavy reliance on biased training datasets. These challenges are magnified when aiming for accurate ∆∆G prediction across the vast universe of protein sequences.