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Sub-micron microplastics affect nitrogen cycling by altering microbial abundance and activities in a soil-legume system
Summary
Researchers found that very small (sub-micron) polyethylene and polypropylene microplastics in soil significantly altered nitrogen cycling by changing the abundance and activity of bacteria around soybean roots. While the microplastics did not affect plant growth directly, they increased nitrogen uptake and shifted the balance of nitrogen-processing bacteria. These hidden changes to soil chemistry could have long-term effects on agricultural productivity and the nutritional quality of crops.
Recently, the environmental and agricultural impact of plastic waste has attracted considerable attention. Here, we investigated the impact of sub-micron polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) microplastics (MPs) on nitrogen cycling, with emphasis on bacterial abundance and diversity in a soil-soybean (Glycine max) system. Exposure to soil containing MPs (50 and 500 mg kg-1) did not affect soybean growth, but significantly increased plant nitrogen uptake, which was confirmed by increased activities of nitrogenase in the soil and glutamine synthetase in soybean root. Additionally, there was an increase in 16S gene copy number and carbon and nitrogen substrate utilization, indicating increased abundance and activity of rhizosphere microbial communities. Moreover, MP contamination affected the taxonomic profile of rhizosphere bacteria, especially the abundance of symbiotic and free-living bacteria involved in nitrogen cycling. Furthermore, qPCR analysis of nitrogen-related genes and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequencing data revealed an increased abundance of functional genes associated with nitrogen fixation and nitrification. However, the concentration and polymer type of MPs did not have a significant impact in our system. Overall, these results provide insights into the interactions between MPs and rhizosphere bacterial communities in the soil-legume system.