Directors of the Röchling Foundation visited the CSIC and the CIB

Annunziata von Hönsbroech, president of the Röchling Foundation, accompanied by Uwe Amrhein, its manager, visited on September 10- 11^th the central campus of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) and the Center for Biological Research (CIB) as part of the collaboration of this foundation with the Interdisciplinary Platform for Sustainable Plastics towards a Circular Economy (SusPlast).

The Röchling Foundation, focused on the impact of plastics in the environment, supports research projects and social initiatives that contribute to the responsible use of plastics as part of a sustainable circular economy. Thus, they will finance the project of the researcher Federica Bertocchini, aimed to develop a biological procedure for plastic degradation based on the larvae of wax worm Galleria mellonella, able to ingest wax and plastic. Dr. Bertocchini has recently incorporated into the PTI SusPlast and the CIB that contributes with five additional research groups to this platform.

The scientific agenda of this visit has included a summary, presented by Auxiliadora Prieto, the PTI coordinator, of the activities carried out so far within SusPlast, as well as an introduction to the new projects and collaborators of the private sector. Dr. Bertocchini presented her project on biodegradation of polymers by biological systems. In addition, the foundation guests visited the CIB facilities and the recently established laboratory of Dr. Bertocchini in this center.

Moreover, the directors of the Röchling Foundation met Prof. Jesús Marco (VICYT) and Prof. Mª Victoria Moreno Arribas (VAACT) of the CSIC Directory Board, as well as the CIB Director, Dr. Enrique J. de la Rosa.