We can't find the internet
Attempting to reconnect
Something went wrong!
Hang in there while we get back on track
Plastic-Colonizing Fungi in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea: Community Structure and Physiological and Transcriptional Responses of Aspergillus to Pristine and Weathered PET
AI summary Read the abstract
Scientists found that fungi—including some types of mold—naturally colonize plastic debris floating in the Mediterranean Sea, with certain fungi actually able to break down plastic and even attach to it more after it's been weathered by sun exposure. This matters because these fungi could eventually help us develop ways to biodegrade plastic waste, but it also raises questions about whether plastic debris in the ocean is becoming a floating habitat for organisms that might affect marine food chains, since plastic-eating fungi could enter the food web that ultimately reaches our plates.
Marine plastic debris provides persistent artificial substrates for microbial colonization, yet the fungal component of the plastisphere remains poorly characterized. Using ITS metabarcoding and culture-based isolation approaches, we characterized the early mycobiome associated with polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic pellets deployed in an Eastern Mediterranean Sea (EMS) marina. The sequence-based communities were taxonomically heterogeneous, with only a limited effect of polymer type. Ascomycota, Zoopagomycota, and Basidiomycota were the dominant phyla identified by the ITS sequence analysis, while Linderina and Starmerella were the dominant genera. In contrast, the cultured isolates belonged exclusively to the phyla Ascomycota and Mucoromycota, with the Aspergillus genus accounting for 52.3% of the isolates. We further recorded physiological responses of 11 Aspergillus isolates to pristine and UV-weathered PET, including attachment, pigmentation, and plastic gravimetric weight loss. A. niger OC26 also exhibited strong peroxidase activity, together with a broad transcriptional response to PET exposure, including 216 upregulated genes and significant enrichment of peroxidase- and membrane-associated functions. UV weathering induced a limited but distinct additional transcriptional shift. Together, these findings indicate that early plastic-associated fungal communities in the EMS are taxonomically diverse, and include metabolically versatile Aspergillus strains that mount distinct physiological and transcriptional responses to PET exposure.
More Papers Like This
Insights into the Transcriptomic Response of Two Aspergillus Fungi Growing in the Presence of Microplastics of Polyethylene Terephthalate Residues Unveil the Presence of Fungal Machinery for Possible PET Bioconversion into High-Value Chemicals
AI summary Read the abstract
Scientists discovered that two types of common fungi can break down plastic particles (specifically PET plastic used in bottles) and potentially turn them into useful chemicals. The fungi produced special enzymes that could eat away small amounts of the plastic over two weeks, suggesting these microorganisms might one day help clean up plastic pollution in our environment. This matters because microplastics are everywhere in our food and water, so finding natural ways to break them down could help reduce our exposure to these tiny plastic particles.
Functional Ecology of the Microbial Plastisphere
AI summary Read the abstract
Scientists found that floating ocean plastic isn't just pollution, it's also a surface where microbes set up shop and behave differently than microbes floating freely in seawater, breaking down complex materials in specialized ways. This matters because it means plastic debris may be creating new microbial hotspots in the ocean, potentially changing how nutrients and pollutants cycle through marine ecosystems that ultimately connect to our food and health.
Molecular identification of ascidian-associated fungi with LDPE-degrading potential from the Karimunjawa waters
AI summary Read the abstract
Scientists studying marine life near Indonesia's Karimunjawa Islands discovered that fungi living on sea creatures called ascidians (small filter-feeding animals) can break down LDPE plastic — the type used in grocery bags and food packaging. One fungus in particular, a newly identified strain of Aspergillus, showed the most promise for eating away at this plastic over a 21-day test period. This matters because plastic pollution in our oceans eventually breaks down into microplastics that end up in seafood and drinking water, posing potential risks to human health. While these fungi won't solve plastic pollution overnight, they
The Culturable Mycobiota of Sediments and Associated Microplastics: From a Harbor to a Marine Protected Area, a Comparative Study
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers investigated fungal diversity in sediments and microplastic surfaces at three Mediterranean sites with varying anthropogenic impact -- a harbor, a marine protected area, and an intermediate site -- culturing 1,526 isolates and finding that microplastics harbor distinct fungal assemblages compared to surrounding sediments, with several species recorded for the first time in marine environments.
Plastic-inhabiting fungi in marine environments and PCL degradation activity
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers collected fungi growing on plastic waste along Korean coastlines and tested their ability to break down a biodegradable plastic called polycaprolactone (PCL), finding that 87 out of 108 species identified showed some degradation ability. This suggests that ocean plastic surfaces host a diverse community of fungi that could potentially be harnessed to biologically break down plastic pollution in marine environments.
Research digests by email
When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.