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Polystyrene microplastics facilitate formation of refractory dissolved organic matter and reduce CO2 emissions
Summary
Researchers found that polystyrene microplastics altered the composition and function of microbial communities in aquatic environments, promoting the formation of refractory dissolved organic matter that resists further breakdown. This shift in organic matter composition also led to reduced carbon dioxide emissions from the water system. The study suggests that microplastic pollution may have unexpected effects on aquatic carbon cycling by changing how organic matter is processed by microbes.
Microplastics, as a type of anthropogenic pollution in aquatic ecosystems, affect the carbon cycle of organic matter. Although some studies have investigated the effects of microplastics on dissolved organic matter (DOM), the impact of alterations in the chemical properties of microplastics on refractory DOM and carbon release remains unclear. Here, we observed that microplastic treatments (e.g., polystyrene, PS) altered the composition and function of microbial community, notably increasing the abundance of microbial families involved in consuming easily degradable organic matter. During the process in which microbial community decomposed organic matter into DOM, PS underwent surface oxidation. The oxidized PS aggregated with DOM and microorganisms through electrostatic interactions and chemical bonds. Moreover, these interactions between oxidized PS and microbial community affect the utilization of organic matter, resulting in a significant decrease in CO emissions. Specifically, total CO emissions decreased by approximately 23.76 % with 0.1 mg/L PS treatment and by 44.97 % with 10 mg/L PS treatment compared to those in PS-free treatments over the entire reaction. These findings underscored the significance of the chemical properties of PS in the interactions among DOM and microorganisms, emphasizing the potential impact of PS microplastics on the carbon cycle in ecosystems.
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