Plastic surrounds us. It wraps our food, clothes our bodies, houses our electronics, and unfortunately, fills our oceans. This versatile material, which has transformed modern life, now poses a major environmental challenge. Most plastics come from petroleum, and its creation contributes to climate change. And as is well known by now, plastics will persist in our environment for centuries.

Scientists at Korea’s Advanced Institute of Science and Technology recently reported a promising solution to this dilemma in the journal Nature Chemical Biology. They engineered common E. coli bacteria to produce a new type of plastic that combines the strength and durability of nylons with the potential biodegradability of certain polyesters.

Creating a material of this nature requires remarkable scientific ingenuity because bacteria do not naturally make anything that resembles nylon. Researchers had to develop a new metabolic pathway by introducing specific genes from other bacterial species and had to reprogram the bacteria’s biochemical capabilities to create materials that are not........

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