Can bacteria eat medical plastic? A hidden hospital threat exposed
UK scientists find that bacteria are feeding on medical plastic and becoming harder to kill. Do hospital devices help superbugs grow?
A new health concern is emerging from an unexpected corner — plastic used in medical devices. Scientists from Brunel University in the UK have discovered that hospital-acquired bacteria can eat medical plastic, making them harder to kill and more dangerous for patients.
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The study focused on Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a bacteria known to cause 10 per cent to 30 per cent of hospital-acquired infections in India. Researchers found that it can digest a biodegradable plastic called PCL, commonly used in stents, sutures, wound dressings, and implants.
Plastic as food
The research team isolated an enzyme from the bacteria and named it Pap1. This enzyme was able to break down 78 per cent of the PCL plastic sample in just seven days. Structurally, the enzyme is similar to those known to degrade PET bottles.
Also read: How harmful microplastics are finding their way into the human body
But the danger doesn’t stop there. The bacteria were not just breaking down the plastic — they were using it as a carbon source, essentially eating it to survive.
Why it matters
First, it means bacteria can survive longer in hospitals or even inside the human body, even when no other nutrients are available.
Second, they can damage or degrade medical devices, causing them to fail or trigger serious infections.
Third, the bacteria use broken-down plastic to build biofilms — sticky shields made of sugar, fat, protein, and DNA — that protect them from antibiotics and the immune system.
Dangerous consequences
“This is indeed a danger sign, because the very materials meant to heal us may be helping bacteria fight back,” the report warns.
As bacteria evolve and adapt to plastic, hospitals may need to rethink the materials used in critical devices. The very substances designed to heal may be enabling microbes to survive and resist treatment.
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