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Combined Toxicity of Polybutylene Succinate Microplastics and Levofloxacin in Cristaria Plicata: Insights from Bioaccumulation and Gut Microbiota Dysbiosis
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Researchers exposed freshwater mussels to biodegradable polybutylene succinate microplastics combined with the antibiotic levofloxacin, finding that UV-aged microplastics promoted greater antibiotic accumulation and significantly altered gut microbiota composition, including enrichment of potentially harmful Bacteroides bacteria.
Microplastics and antibiotics frequently coexist in aquatic environments and pose potential health risks. However, the combined toxicity of aged and unaged microplastics with antibiotics remains largely unknown. This study investigated the effects of biodegradable polybutylene succinate microplastics (PBS-MPs), before and after UV aging, in combination with levofloxacin (LEV), on bioaccumulation and intestinal microflora in Cristaria plicata. PBS-MPs exposure under low concentration (1 μg/L), particularly aged PBS-MPs, promoted LEV accumulation in mussels. Sequencing of mussel intestinal flora after 14 d of exposure showed that the addition of aged PBS (APBS) under low LEV exposure increased the number of ASVs by 732 compared to the control. Specifically, the abundance of Firmicutes decreased after PBS exposure, while Proteobacteria exhibited the opposite tendency. Alpha diversity analysis indicated no significant differences in the intestinal flora among treatment groups. LEfSe indicated that APBS exposure significantly altered the microbiota compared to PPBS, most notably through the enrichment of Bacteroides, which can damage organisms. Our results provide new insights into the mechanisms underlying the combined toxicity of microplastics and antibiotics in aquatic organisms.
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This review pulls together existing research on how antibiotics and microplastics, both common pollutants in lakes and rivers, affect tiny water creatures called Daphnia, which are important indicators of freshwater ecosystem health. The key takeaway: when these two pollutants combine, they appear to cause more harm together than either does alone, suggesting our current safety assessments (which typically test pollutants one at a time) may be underestimating real-world risks. While this study focused on aquatic life rather than humans directly, it matters because these same waterways often feed into our drinking water and food supply, so better understanding combined pollutant effects could help protect
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Researchers reviewed how microplastics — tiny plastic particles under 5mm — harm aquatic ecosystems, documenting that fish, invertebrates, and other marine life can ingest them, leading to physical damage, toxic chemical exposure, and disruptions to feeding and reproduction.
Microplastic Contamination in Aquatic Organisms: An Ecotoxicological Perspective
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"This ecotoxicological review examined how microplastics accumulate in aquatic organisms across multiple trophic levels, documenting impacts on physiology, reproduction, and behavior, as well as the transport of associated chemical contaminants through food webs. Because humans sit at the top of aquatic food chains, the bioaccumulation dynamics described here translate directly into dietary microplastic exposure, making ecotoxicological endpoints in fish and shellfish key indicators of human health risk."
Microplastic Toxicity in Aquatic Organisms and Aquatic Ecosystems: a Review
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Researchers reviewed how microplastics move through aquatic food webs, finding evidence that these particles accumulate across trophic levels, but noted that most toxicity studies are conducted in labs rather than real ecosystems, leaving major gaps in understanding the true ecological and human health risks.
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Researchers conducted a systematic quantitative literature review of microplastic ecotoxicity in marine organisms, finding that polyethylene, polypropylene, and polystyrene particles (1–100 µm) are most commonly ingested and cause mortality, reproductive impairment, genotoxicity, and behavioral effects across a wide range of species.
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