Biodegradation of polyurethane polymer using endophytic fungi isolated from nepenthes ampullaria in Sarawak

Electrical and electronic wastes that comprise of discarded computers and mobile phones are found abundantly due to their short lifespan. The chemical composition of these wastes contains potential harmful contaminants. However, most of these wastes are often disposed in landfills. Effective recovery technology causes minimal impact to the environment but it is expensive. In some poor countries, wastes are burned or dissolved in strong acids that cause leaching of contaminants into the rivers. Food chains are affected and human health be threaten due to exposure to contaminants through drinking, food, and smoke. Proper management of the wastes are thus, essential to combat the developing problems. Bioremediation is a green approach that is helpful to minimize environmental pollution associated with E-waste. In this thesis, we explored the potential of endophytic fungi from Nepenthes ampullaria (pitcher plant, collected in the Mentawai Jungle, Sarawak) for bioremediation purposes of the plastic component in E-waste, polyurethane (PUR) polymers. A number of isolates are able to degrade polyurethane in solid medium efficiently. Three isolates can grow and survive by utilising polyurethane with minimal nutrients for their growth. Enzymatic activity was also detected when tested using p-nitrophenol acetate as the substrate. The isolates were identified using ITS1 and 4 and were closely related to the genus Pestalotiopsis. Proteins of untreated and treated fungi with polyurethane were analyzed by 2-dimensional electrophoresis. Analyses of the 2-dimensional electrophoresis profile revealed changes in the abundance of proteins when treated with polyurethane. This study is to our knowledge the first on endophytes isolated from Nepenthes ampullaria that can degrade PUR, and also their proteomes. Hopefully, results obtained from this study can in future help to reduce polyurethane wastes.