We can't find the internet
Attempting to reconnect
Something went wrong!
Hang in there while we get back on track
Unraveling the coastal marine plastisphere archaeome
Summary
Scientists found that plastic pollution in the ocean creates a unique surface where a group of microbes called archaea (distant relatives of bacteria) thrive differently than they do in the surrounding water, and this effect gets stronger in more polluted areas. These microbes can influence important chemical cycles in the ocean, like how methane and nitrogen are processed, meaning plastic waste may be quietly reshaping marine ecosystems in ways we're only beginning to understand. While this study doesn't directly address human health, it's a reminder that plastic pollution's effects reach deep into ocean life at the microbial level, potentially aff
Abstract Plastic pollution has created an expanding anthropogenic microbial niche, the plastisphere, raising questions about microbial ecology and associated impacts. Archaea, the third domain of life with fundamental ecological and evolutionary significance, remain poorly understood in this habitat. Here, using paired plastic debris and bulk-water samples from coastal marine ecosystems, key archaeal habitats increasingly threatened by plastic pollution, we characterize the plastisphere archaeome through archaeal amplicon sequencing and metagenomics. We show that the archaeome is significantly reshaped in the plastisphere, exhibiting higher taxonomic diversity, greater community heterogeneity, and selective enrichment of Euryarchaeota and Crenarchaeota. Archaeal genes involved in methane, nitrogen, and sulfur cycling are enriched in the plastisphere. Taxonomic and functional divergence between the plastisphere and bulk water increases with anthropogenic chemical stress. These findings suggest that plastic pollution could alter marine archaeal diversity, biogeography, and biogeochemical potential, extending understanding of plastisphere impacts to the archaeal domain.