Enzymatic degradation of atactic poly(R,S-3-hydroxybutyrate) induced by amorphous polymers and the enzymatic degradation temperature window of an amorphous polymer system

Biomacromolecules. 2001 Fall;2(3):1045-51. doi: 10.1021/bm010087w.

Abstract

The phase structure and biodegradability were investigated for amorphous blends of chemosynthetic fully amorphous atactic poly(R,S-3-hydroxybutyrate) (a-PHB) with atactic poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) and atactic poly(R,S-lactide) (a-PLA). The differential scanning calorimetry thermal analysis indicated that a-PHB/PMMA blends were partially miscible while a-PHB/a-PLA blends were miscible in the studied composition range. The biodegradations of the blends were carried out in phosphate buffer solution in the presence of bacterial poly(R-3-hydroxybutyrate) extracellular depolymerases purified from Alcaligenes faecalis T1 and P. stutzeri. Although a-PHB in the pure state was not degraded by these depolymerase, it was degraded by blending with PMMA and a-PLA. The results demonstrated that the enzymatic degradation of a-PHB can be induced by amorphous polymers such as PMMA and a-PLA. Also, the biodegradation rate of a-PHB in the blends decreased drastically when the degradation temperature is too much away from the polymer glass transition temperatures. On the basis of these results, a temperature window of the enzymatic degradation was first proposed for the blend and the essence of induced degradation was discussed.

MeSH terms

  • Alcaligenes / enzymology
  • Biodegradation, Environmental
  • Calorimetry, Differential Scanning
  • Carboxylic Ester Hydrolases / metabolism
  • Hydrolysis
  • Hydroxybutyrates / chemistry*
  • Hydroxybutyrates / metabolism*
  • Macromolecular Substances
  • Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy
  • Polyesters / chemistry*
  • Polyesters / metabolism*
  • Polymethyl Methacrylate / chemistry
  • Pseudomonas / enzymology
  • Temperature

Substances

  • Hydroxybutyrates
  • Macromolecular Substances
  • Polyesters
  • poly-beta-hydroxybutyrate
  • poly(lactide)
  • Polymethyl Methacrylate
  • Carboxylic Ester Hydrolases
  • poly-beta-hydroxybutyrate depolymerase