A recent study highlights the critical role oceans could play in addressing some of the world’s most pressing challenges, such as antimicrobial resistance and plastic pollution. The research, conducted by a team from BGI Research in China, Shandong University, Xiamen University, the Ocean University of China, the University of Copenhagen, and the University of East Anglia (UEA) in the UK, explored the genomes of nearly 43,200 marine microorganisms. These genomes, collected from bacteria and archaea in diverse ocean environments, revealed an astonishing level of microbial diversity and genetic potential, with 138 distinct microbial groups identified. The researchers used advanced computational methods to discover a novel CRISPR-Cas9 system and 10 new antimicrobial peptides. These systems play a role in microbial immune defenses and offer promising leads for the development of new types of antibiotics, a crucial need given the rising threat of antimicrobial resistance. According to the World Health Organization, this prohibition is caused by the widespread use of drugs that have become a major global health problem, thus requiring the discovery of new antibiotics. In addition to addressing antimicrobial resistance, this research also addresses the problem of plastic pollution in the oceans. Researchers have discovered three enzymes capable of breaking down polyethylene terephthalate (PET), a common type of plastic that seriously pollutes marine environments.
Laboratory tests confirmed the effectiveness of these enzymes and demonstrated their potential use in reducing plastic waste in the ocean. Professor Thomas Mock, marine microbiologist at UEA and lead author of the study, said this work represents a major advance in marine metagenomics. Using large-scale sequencing of marine microbiomes, scientists can better understand microbial diversity and evolution, paving the way for new biotechnological and medical applications. The study also emphasizes the importance of marine microbes in global processes such as carbon fixation and recycling of nutrients necessary for life on Earth. The extreme diversity of marine environments – from the surface to the deep – creates unique evolutionary pressures that drive the adaptation and co-evolution of marine microbes. This diversity can be used to explore sustainable and innovative solutions to global challenges.