Engineered enzyme turns formaldehyde pollutant into key pharmaceutical building block

Formaldehyde is a common chemical used in various industries as a disinfectant, resin precursor, and synthetic intermediate. It is volatile, highly toxic, and a key environmental pollutant with genotoxic and carcinogenic effects, harming both human health and the environment. Therefore, there is an urgent need to come up with useful strategies to convert formaldehyde into non-toxic value-added products, ensuring environmental protection as well as chemical sustainability.