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Biodegradable polymers have been developed rapidly in the last years and are widely used today in the fields of pharmacy, clinical biomedicine, cosmetic, medical, packing industries, tissue engineering, agriculture and other areas. The interest in biodegradable polymers has been increasing, mainly due to rising oil prices, which is the basic feedstock of plastic derived from petroleum, and also due to the problem of the removal of waste plastics that accumulate in the environment. Biodegradable polymers have many advantages in contrast to synthetic polymers and can be decomposed in the environment to non-hazardous substances. Biodegradable polymers are classified into two classes based on their synthesis i.e., synthetic and natural polymers. They are derived either from petroleum resources or from biological resources. The following review presents an overview of the different biodegradable polymers and their properties, current scientific research, applications, global production of bioplastic and replacement of conventional plastic.

The isolation of keratin from poultry feathers using subcritical water was studied in a batch reactor at temperatures (120–250 °C) and reaction times (5–75 min). The hydrolyzed product was characterized by FTIR and elemental analysis, while the molecular weight of the isolated product was determined by SDS-PAGE electrophoresis. To determine whether disulfide bond cleavage was followed by depolymerization of protein molecules to amino acids, the concentration of 27 amino acids in the hydrolysate was analyzed by GC/MS. The optimal operating parameters for obtaining a high molecular weight protein hydrolysate from poultry feathers were 180 °C and 60 min. The molecular weight of the protein hydrolysate obtained under optimal conditions ranged from 4.5 to 12 kDa, and the content of amino acids in the dried product was low (2.53% w/w). Elemental and FTIR analyses of unprocessed feathers and dried hydrolysate obtained under optimal conditions showed no significant differences in protein content and structure. Obtained hydrolysate is a colloidal solution with a tendency for particle agglomeration. Finally, a positive influence on skin fibroblast viability was observed for the hydrolysate obtained under optimal processing conditions for concentrations below 6.25 mg/mL, which makes the product interesting for various biomedical applications.