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Effects of polyethylene microplastics on CHCl3 and CHBr3 fluxes and microbial community in temperate salt marsh soil
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This study examined how polyethylene microplastics in marine sediments affect the production of halogenated compounds (chloroform and bromoform) and microbial community structure, finding that plastics alter both biogeochemical fluxes and microbial diversity.
Microplastics (MPs) affect the carbon cycle in coastal salt marsh soils. However, studies on their effects on CHCl and CHBr, which are volatile halohydrocarbons that can damage the ozone layer, are lacking. In this study, indoor simulation experiments were conducted to explore the effects of MPs invasion on the source and sink characteristics of soil CHCl and CHBr. The results showed that different concentrations of polyethylene (PE)-MPs promoted CHCl and CHBr emissions. Emission peaks of the two gases appeared on days 3 and 15 during the culture cycle. CHCl and CHBr fluxes were mainly affected by soil physicochemical properties and microbial communities. PE-MPs caused changes in soil properties, microorganisms, and related functional genes. Soil total organic carbon, which was significantly and positively correlated with CHCl. Dissolved organic matter, which was one of the main factors affecting CHBr, its relative content increased after the addition of PE-MPs. The abundances of Methylocella and Dehalococcoides, which mediate dechlorination reduction, decreased with the addition of PE-MPs. The addition of PE-MPs also significantly varied the abundance of ctrA, which controls dechlorination in soil microorganisms. The gene pceA greatly influenced CHCl emissions. In addition, CHBr flux was influenced by the interactions between sediment redox and microbial co-metabolic reactions under the control of genes such as TC.FEV.OM and soxB. This study provides theoretical and data support for the source and sink characteristics of volatile halohydrocarbons in coastal salt marshes and highlights the environmental hazards of MPs.
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Researchers tracked bacterial colonization on different microplastic types in anoxic salt marsh sediment over one year, finding that PVC recruited distinct sulfate-reducing bacterial communities and that PCB-contaminated plastics failed to stimulate actual dechlorination.
A Study of the Effects of Microplastics on Microbial Communities in Marine Sediments
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This study investigated how the presence of microplastics in marine sediments affects microbial communities and, specifically, the methane cycle, finding that microplastics significantly altered microbial community structure and function. Since marine sediment microbes play a critical role in regulating greenhouse gas emissions, microplastic contamination could have broader climate-relevant effects beyond direct toxicity.
[Effects of Polyethylene Microplastics on Growth and Halocarbon Release of Marine Microalgae].
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Lab experiments showed that polyethylene microplastics affected two species of marine microalgae differently, inhibiting growth of one while promoting growth of the other. Microplastic stress also increased production of reactive oxygen species and altered the release of volatile halocarbons, trace gases important for climate and ozone chemistry.
Estuarine Microbiomes And Biogeochemistry: Impacts Of Spatiotemporal Variation, Algal Blooms, And Microplastics
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Researchers investigated how microplastics affect the microbial communities in an estuary (a coastal mixing zone of fresh and salt water), finding that polyethylene, PVC, and biodegradable plastic particles all developed biofilms harboring bacteria capable of nitrogen cycling and hydrocarbon breakdown, suggesting microplastics create new ecological niches that could alter nutrient flows in coastal ecosystems.
[Effect of Polyethylene Microplastics on the Microbial Community of Saline Soils].
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Researchers investigated how polyethylene (PE) microplastics at concentrations of 1% and 4% dry weight affect microbial communities in saline soils under chloride and sulphate salt conditions, finding that PE microplastics reduced microbial diversity and abundance with sulphate soils showing stronger effects and Proteobacteria relative abundance positively correlating with microplastic concentration.
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