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Comment
. 2017 Aug 7;27(15):R744-R745.
doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2017.07.004.

Polyethylene bio-degradation by caterpillars?

Carina Weber  1 , Stefan Pusch  1 , Till Opatz  2
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Comment

Polyethylene bio-degradation by caterpillars?

Carina Weber et al. Curr Biol. .
Free article

Abstract

In their recent paper on the degradation of polyethylene by caterpillars of the wax moth Galleria melonella, Bombelli et al.[1] report various experiments, including microscopic and spectroscopic data which the authors believe support the chemical digestion of the polymers by these insects. While the biodegradation of mostly inert artificial polymers is definitely a very interesting research field, we must respectfully disagree with the methodology and conclusions from this paper.

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  • Response to Weber et al.
    Bombelli P, Howe CJ, Bertocchini F. Bombelli P, et al. Curr Biol. 2017 Aug 7;27(15):R745. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2017.07.005. Curr Biol. 2017. PMID: 28787600

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