Are at the point now, where we must find ways to deal with the consequences of our love affair with caffeine?
Caffeine and methylxanthine are brought to us mostly by chocolate, sodas, energy drinks, tea and coffee - and now CaffeinAll™. Many of us are undeniably grateful for that. But these compounds have become a common pollutant in wastewater and surface waters. We must start to remove them now to forestall another attack on our own and our planet's environment.
Fortunately, University of Texas and University of Iowa researchers, led by Jeffrey Barrick, have a solution!
They have created a strain of E. coli that is so addicted to caffeine that it dies without it. This discovery shows promise for a variety of beneficial applications. The most obvious is that of decontaminating caffeine-polluted water. Byproducts from processing and brewing coffee beans are often rich in nutrients that can also be extracted. Another application could be to help purify coffee waste.
Watch our video to learn more:
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