Hamed Ramezani Awal Riabi; Seyed Alireza Hajiseyed Mirzahosseini; Ali Firoozi Chahak; Ali Reza Mohammad zadeh; Jalil Imani Harsini
Abstract
Background and purpose: Today, polyethylene plastics have become a big problem of environmental health, i.e. excessive production of waste, and it has endangered the environment. But insects have come to the aid of the environment, and in the meantime, the large wax-eating moth (Galleria mellonella) ...
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Background and purpose: Today, polyethylene plastics have become a big problem of environmental health, i.e. excessive production of waste, and it has endangered the environment. But insects have come to the aid of the environment, and in the meantime, the large wax-eating moth (Galleria mellonella) is able to digest polyethylene plastic, polyester, aluminum foil, and even fabric masks with the help of the microbiome of its larva's stomach. This study was also designed to investigate the ability of G. mellonella larvae to remove polyethylene plastic .Materials and methods: First, G. melonella larvae were collected from Gonabad honey apiaries in June 2022. The larvae were reared in the Gonabad University of Medical Sciences medical entomology laboratory with beeswax and synthetic food in plastic boxes and dark rooms (temperature 25±2 oC and humidity 33%). To feed the larvae, pieces of plastic film were cut into diameters (10×10 cm) from the freezer, garbage, and shopping bag (so-called with handles) and placed on ten Petri dishes with a diameter of (8×8 cm) containing ten larvae. Another petri dish (with a hole for larvae to breathe) was placed on the polyethylene films. The produced biomass of larvae related to each type of plastic was analyzed separately with Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (FT-IR).Results: Analysis of 8 types of biomass produced by larvae feeding from wax (control) compared to polyethylene plastics (target item) with FT-IRIt revealed functional groups C-CL, C=O, C=C, R-OH, CH2, -C-C-, which is a sign of polyethylene plastic degradation. Also, the comparison of the amount of plastic removal among the larvae fed on different types of polyethylene film revealed a significant difference (P<0.05).Conclusion: G. melonella larvae as a biological method can be effective in removing plastic from nature in the future.