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chriswhoppers t1_itr5an3 wrote

Reply to comment by lacergunn in Recycling plastic is practically impossible — and the problem is getting worse by chrisdh79

The problem with that is "Plants are producers, using the energy of the sun to make seeds, cones, and spores to reproduce, while fungi are decomposers that break down decaying matter" - National Wildlife Federation

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lacergunn t1_itr5mrr wrote

That's what the modification is for. I dont need all of the fungi's genes, just the ones that produce the enzymes that break down the plastics into their base nutrients.

Of course this is all hypothetical, I dont have anywhere close to the resources to actually experiment with this

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chriswhoppers t1_itr6gfs wrote

Theoretically its completely possible. Using yeast fermentation, specific enzymes can be targeted and reproduced rapidly with high purity through very meticulous chloroplast extractions. Then the enzyme would be introduced over generations of your plant variety, in hopes of mutations to produce a stellar variety for you specific purpose. Yeast fermentation isn't necessary, but much faster than having fungus grow next to your plant and cloning the mutants from there

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