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Leachable Additives of Tire Particles Explain the Shift in Microbial Community Composition and Function in Coastal Sediments
Summary
Researchers found that tire particles deposited in coastal zones can significantly alter microbial communities in sediments, disrupting key nutrient cycling processes including carbon fixation and nitrogen cycling. The study showed that chemical additives leaching from tire particles, rather than the particles themselves, were responsible for over 90% of the changes in microbial community structure. These findings highlight how tire-derived microplastics can harm coastal ecosystems through the chemicals they release.
Massive microplastics are deposited in the coastal zone. Tire particles (TPs) are an important microplastic source, but little is known about how TPs affect the microbial community composition and function in coastal sediments and the role leachable additives play in TP toxicity. Here, a microcosm experiment was performed using coastal sediments amended with different doses of TPs and with their leachable additives to investigate their effects on the sediment microbial community composition and function. Environmentally relevant concentrations of TPs can change the microbial community structure, decrease community diversity, and inhibit nutrient cycling processes, including carbon fixation and degradation, nitrification, denitrification, and sulfur cycling in sediments. Notably, the raw TP and leachate treatments showed consistent effects. A variety of additives were found in the pore water of sediment, and they could explain over 90% of the variations of the community structure. Further modeling revealed that leachable additives not only directly influenced community function but also indirectly affected community diversity and function by shifting the community structure. In addition, rare taxa could be crucial mediators of ecological functions of sediment microbial community. Combined, this study provides novel insights into the role of TPs' leachable additives in affecting sediment microbial community and function.