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Effects of microplastics on photosynthesized C allocation in a rice-soil system and its utilization by soil microbial groups
Summary
Researchers used carbon isotope pulse labeling to track how microplastics affect the allocation of photosynthesized carbon in a rice paddy system. They found that microplastic amendments reduced photosynthetic carbon in roots by 30-54% while PVC microplastics increased soil organic carbon by up to 4.7 times compared to untreated soil. The study reveals that microplastics can significantly alter carbon cycling in paddy ecosystems by redirecting plant carbon inputs and changing how soil microbes utilize those carbon sources.
The effect of microplastics (MPs) on the allocation of rice photosynthetic carbon (C) in paddy systems and its utilization by soil microorganisms remain unclear. In this study, C-CO pulse labeling was used to quantify the input and allocation of photosynthetic C in a rice-soil system under MPs amendment. Rice was pulse-labeled at tillering growth stage under 0.01% and 1% w/w polyethylene (PE) and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) MP amendments. Plants and soils were sampled 24 h after pulse labeling. Photosynthesized C in roots in MP treatments was 30-54% lower than that in no-MP treatments. The C in soil organic C (SOC) in PVC-MP-amended bulk soil was 4.3-4.7 times higher than that in no-MP treatments. PVC and high-dose PE increased the photosynthetic C in microbial biomass C in the rhizosphere soil. MPs altered the allocation of photosynthetic C to microbial phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) groups. High-dose PVC increased the C gram-positive PLFAs. Low-dose PE and high-dose PVC enhanced C in fungal PLFAs in bulk soil (including arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) and Zygomycota) by 175% and 197%, respectively. The results highlight that MPs alter plant C input and microbial utilization of rhizodeposits, thereby affecting the C cycle in paddy ecosystems.