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Response of peanut plant and soil N-fixing bacterial communities to conventional and biodegradable microplastics
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Researchers tested how conventional plastics (polyethylene and polystyrene) and a biodegradable plastic (polylactic acid) affect peanut plant growth and nitrogen-fixing soil bacteria. They found that while none of the plastics reduced plant biomass, the biodegradable PLA at high doses dramatically altered soil nitrogen levels and bacterial community composition. The study suggests that biodegradable plastics may not be as harmless to agricultural soil ecosystems as commonly assumed.
Microplastics (MPs) occur and distribute widely in agroecosystems, posing a potential threat to soil-plant systems. However, little is known about their effects on legumes and N-fixing microbes. Here, we explored the effects of high-density polyethylene (HDPE), polystyrene (PS), and polylactic acid (PLA) on the growth of peanuts and soil N-fixing bacterial communities. All MPs treatments showed no phytotoxic effects on plant biomass, and PS and PLA even increased plant height, especially at the high dose. All MPs changed soil NO-N and NH-N contents and the activities of urease and FDAse. Particularly, high-dose PLA decreased soil NO-N content by 97% and increased soil urease activity by 104%. In most cases, MPs negatively affected plant N content, and high-dose PLA had the most pronounced effects. All MPs especially PLA changed soil N-fixing bacterial community structure. Symbiotic N-fixer Rhizoboales were greatly enriched by high-dose PLA, accompanied by the emergence of root nodulation, which may represent an adaptive strategy for peanuts to overcome N deficiency caused by PLA MPs pollution. Our findings indicate that MPs can change peanut-N fixing bacteria systems in a type- and dose-dependent manner, and biodegradable MPs may have more profound consequences for N biogeochemical cycling than traditional MPs.
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Effects of polyethylene and polylactic acid microplastics on plant growth and bacterial community in the soil
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Researchers compared the effects of regular polyethylene and biodegradable polylactic acid microplastics on soybean growth and soil bacteria. Surprisingly, the biodegradable microplastics caused more harm than conventional ones, significantly reducing root growth and altering soil bacterial communities important for nitrogen fixation. This finding challenges the assumption that biodegradable plastics are always safer for the environment and raises questions about their impact on food crops.
Effect of conventional and biodegradable microplastics on the soil-soybean system: A perspective on rhizosphere microbial community and soil element cycling
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This study compared how conventional polyethylene microplastics and biodegradable alternatives (PBAT and PLA) affect soil bacteria and nutrient cycling in soybean fields. The biodegradable microplastics actually caused more harm to soybean growth than conventional ones, reducing shoot biomass by up to 34% and disrupting nitrogen availability in soil. This challenges the assumption that biodegradable plastics are always better for the environment and raises questions about their impact on agricultural productivity and food security.
Insights into soil microbial assemblages and nitrogen cycling function responses to conventional and biodegradable microplastics
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Researchers compared how biodegradable polylactic acid and conventional PVC microplastics affect soil bacteria and nitrogen cycling processes. They found that both types of microplastics altered microbial communities, but biodegradable plastics had distinct effects on nitrogen-processing bacteria and did not simply behave as a harmless alternative. The study suggests that switching to biodegradable plastics may change rather than eliminate the impact of microplastic contamination on soil health.
Soil biota modulate the effects of microplastics on biomass and diversity of plant communities
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Researchers used mesocosm experiments with natural soil biota to compare the effects of biodegradable and non-biodegradable microplastics on plant community biomass and diversity. Soil biota modulated the impact of microplastics, with biodegradable plastics showing similar effects to conventional plastics on plant community structure, challenging the assumption that biodegradable alternatives are environmentally benign.
LDPE and biodegradable PLA-PBAT plastics differentially affect plant-soil nitrogen partitioning and dynamics in a Hordeum vulgare mesocosm
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Researchers compared how conventional LDPE plastic and biodegradable PLA-PBAT plastic affect nitrogen cycling in soil where barley was growing. LDPE microplastics reduced the amount of fertilizer nitrogen taken up by plants and increased nitrogen lost through leaching, while biodegradable plastics boosted microbial activity in the soil. The study shows that different types of plastic pollution affect soil nutrient cycles in different ways, which could influence both crop nutrition and groundwater contamination.
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When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.