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>b/b<: influence of feeding mode on microplastic intake by benthic organisms and detection of persistent organic pollutants in biological and sediment samples
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This study investigated micropollutant accumulation including microplastics in deep-sea organisms from the Southern Atlantic, examining how feeding mode influences contaminant intake. Results showed that filter feeders and deposit feeders accumulated different levels of microplastics and chemical pollutants, reflecting the deep sea's vulnerability to surface pollution.
The deep sea has been known as the last marine environment to face the impacts of human action. Recent studies, carried out predominantly in the northern hemisphere, have found marine debris and chemical pollutants in the fauna, sediments and water column of this ecosystem which is the largest on Earth. Considering ongoing efforts to document deep-sea pollution in the southern hemisphere, the first chapter in this thesis shows that microplastics have been present in the benthic community of Antarctica since the 1980s, presenting here the earliest record of microplastics in the continent, originating from invertebrates deposited in biological collections. Levels of contamination are similar in specimens which were recently sampled or were originally caught at shallower depths, which could indicate a consistent entry of microplastics in Antarctica for at least the past four decades. In the second chapter, this work presents the first record of microplastics and persistent organic pollutants in a deep-sea benthic community and in the surrounding sediment in the Southwestern Atlantic, within the Santos Basin. In both chapters, organisms feeding off organic matter deposited in surface sediments had the highest ingestion values, both regarding number of particles and ingestion frequency, indicating the role of this feeding mode in the concentration of environmental pollutants.
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Micropollutants in the Deep Sea: Influence of Feeding Mode on Microplastic Ingestion in Benthic Organisms and Detection of Persistent Organic Pollutants in Biological and Sediment Samples
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This Portuguese-language study examined micropollutant exposure including microplastics in deep-sea organisms from the Southern Atlantic, analyzing how feeding mode determines microplastic ingestion across different species. The research found that even the most remote marine habitats on Earth harbor plastic contamination detectable in deep-sea fauna.
Microplastics and POPs on the Southwestern Atlantic deep-sea floor: a study of megafauna and sediments
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This study provided the first report of microplastics and persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in the Southwestern Atlantic deep-sea floor, examining both sediments and benthic megafauna. Microplastics and POPs were detected in deep-sea organisms and sediments, demonstrating that even remote deep-ocean environments in the Southern Hemisphere are contaminated by surface-derived plastic pollution.
Presence of microplastics in benthic and epibenthic organisms: Influence of habitat, feeding mode and trophic level
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This study examined microplastic occurrence in benthic and epibenthic invertebrates from the Western English Channel, finding that habitat type, feeding mode, and trophic level all influenced microplastic ingestion rates. The results suggest that bottom-dwelling filter feeders and deposit feeders are among the most exposed organisms in seafloor food webs.
Microplastic pollution identified in deep-sea water and ingested by benthic invertebrates in the Rockall Trough, North Atlantic Ocean
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Researchers identified microplastics in deep-sea water samples and found them in the gut contents of benthic invertebrates living on the seafloor — providing evidence that the deep sea is both a sink for microplastics and that deep-sea organisms are ingesting them. The study raises concerns about contamination reaching even the most remote marine ecosystems.
Consistent microplastic ingestion by deep-sea invertebrates over the last four decades (1976–2015), a study from the North East Atlantic
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A long-term study spanning nearly four decades (1976-2015) found consistent microplastic ingestion in two deep-sea invertebrate species from the Northeast Atlantic, demonstrating that deep-sea organisms have been exposed to plastic pollution since at least the late 1970s. The results highlight that microplastic contamination has long penetrated even remote and poorly monitored deep-sea habitats.
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