Daya daga cikin injunan ci gaban tattalin arziki a rabin na biyu na karnin da ya gabata shine robobi. Suna da arha, mai sauƙin samarwa, juriya, na roba kuma, idan sako-sako, m, amma suna da b-gefe, tun da ba su da biodegradable, tun da babu wata halitta mai rai da za ta iya ciyar da su.
Tsawon tsayin su shine, ba tare da shakka ba, ɗaya daga cikin manyan ƙalubalen da muke fuskanta, tun da aƙalla shekaru ɗari huɗu da hamsin dole ne su wuce don polymers don fara aiwatar da rarrabuwa a matakin ƙwayoyin cuta.
An yi kiyasin cewa sama da tan miliyan 300 na robobi ake kerawa a duniya, wanda kashi 90% na man fetur ne ke samu, sannan kuma wani dan kadan, kusan kashi 15%, za a kwato su kuma a kwato su a duniya.
Daga cikin wannan adadin, kimanin ton miliyan takwas ne ke yawo a kowace shekara a cikin tekunan mu, inda suke nutsewa, suna taruwa a cikin magudanar ruwa ko kuma a sanya su cikin jerin abinci na dan Adam.
Hasashen ɗan gajeren lokaci ba shi da ɗanɗano, wasu muryoyin masu iko sun yi kiyasin cewa nan da shekara ta 2050 samar da sharar filastik zai kai tan biliyan goma sha uku. Wani adadi wanda, ba tare da shakka ba, yana tilasta mana ɗaukar matakan kuzari da gaggawa.
Mun gode a cikin 2016 mun gano kasancewar abokin tarayya mai yiwuwa kuma, kamar yadda ya faru sau da yawa a cikin tarihin kimiyya, serendipity ya taka muhimmiyar rawa. A bana wasu gungun masana kimiya na kasar Japan sun gudanar da bincike kan kwayoyin cutar a wata masana'antar sake yin amfani da su a birnin Sakai na kasar Japan. A wannan lokacin mun yi nazarin kwayoyin da aka samo daga ragowar polyethylene terephthalate (PET) ban da bangaren (etylene glycol da terephthalic acid).
Da mamaki suka gano cewa wata kwayar cuta mai suna Ideonella sakaiensis, tana iya amfani da PET a matsayin tushen tushen carbon na farko. Wani lokaci daga baya yana yiwuwa a nuna cewa ƙananan ƙwayoyin cuta suna da mahimman kwayoyin halitta guda biyu waɗanda za su iya 'shanye' PET: PETase da mono (2-hiroexieethyl) terephthalate hydrolase.
Magani mai fata
Gano sarkar na rayuwa ya sa a iya bayyana dalilin da ya sa Ideonella ya kafa wurin zama a cikin wata shuka ta sake yin amfani da ita, amma abin da ya rage a warware shi shi ne abin da ya kasance hanyar da kwayar cutar ta samo asali don canza robobi, wanda aka hayar a cikin shekaru goma na arba'in na karni na karshe, a cikin tushen abincinsa.
Kwayar cutar tana iya juyar da PET zuwa poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) - wanda kuma aka sani da PHB - wanda shine nau'in filastik mai lalacewa. Abin sha'awa na wannan labarin shine ana kiyasin PET yana raguwa a cikin adadin 0,13mg a kowace centimita murabba'in kowace rana, a zafin jiki na 30ºC, adadin kawar da ke zama 'da sannu a hankali'.
Sa'a ya sake yin murmushi a gare mu a cikin 2018 lokacin da masu bincike a Jami'ar Postmouth (UK) suka tsara wani enzyme da gangan wanda ya inganta PETase na kwayan cuta.
A wannan lokacin, an yi ƙoƙarin ɗaukar wani mataki na gaba don haɓaka haɓakar sa ta hanyar 'saka' enzyme ɗin mutant a cikin kwayar cutar extremophile, mai iya jure yanayin zafi sama da 70ºC, adadi inda PET ya fi danko. Wannan 'canja wuri' zai iya hanzarta aiwatar da lalacewa ta hanyar zuwa 10%.
Duk waɗannan binciken na iya ba mu hutu da buɗe taga bege, tunda ƙwayoyin cuta 'suna cinye robobi' za su kasance cikin hanyar magance matsalar muhalli da robobi ke haifarwa.
Mr Jara
Pedro Gargantilla kwararre ne a Asibitin El Escorial (Madrid) kuma marubucin shahararrun littattafai.
