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Microplastics in Aquatic Environments
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This review summarizes the current state of microplastic research in aquatic environments, covering the plastisphere — the microbial community that colonizes plastic surfaces — and the ways microplastics interact with other aquatic organisms. The paper highlights microplastics as a growing ecological concern that affects food webs and ecosystem processes.
The high surface areas of the microplastics adsorb organic and inorganic compounds from the water column and turn them into nutrient resources for microbial taxa. Their capacity to attract microbial taxa and preferences of microorganisms to make the microplastics their habitat has earned the dubious name plastisphere or ecocorona. Due to their inherent characteristics of hydrophobic nature and higher surface to volume ratio, microplastics coexist with many other types of contaminants such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, persistent organic pollutants (POPs), trace metals, and pharmaceutically active compounds, consequently changing their environmental fate and ecological impacts in the aquatic environments. Substantial quantities of plastic litter dumped into the oceans illegally by offshore platforms and vessels, coastal tourism, marine aquaculture, fisheries (abandoned and relict fishing gear), commercial and other fleets, and lost cargo shipping containers also contribute plastic into the oceans. The dispersal of microplastics in aquatic environments is similar to that of natural sediments with coarse-grained and dense particles deposited close to the source, while finer and less dense particles remain in suspension and settle in low-energy environments. Microplastic contamination in bottom waters is considerably higher than in surface waters, suggesting their vertical migration into deeper waters with eventual deposition and burial within bottom sediments.
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Microplastics and water microbiota
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This review examines the interactions between microplastics and aquatic microbiota, summarizing recent research on the composition of the plastisphere community that colonizes plastic surfaces in marine and freshwater environments. Researchers discuss which microorganisms dominate plastic biofilms and how plastisphere communities differ from free-living microbial assemblages. The paper contributes to understanding how microplastic pollution reshapes microbial ecology in aquatic systems.
Environmental Health Impact of Plastisphere
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This review examines the growing body of research on plastisphere ecosystems in aquatic environments including rivers, lakes, and estuaries, discussing microbial community composition on plastic surfaces and the ecological consequences for freshwater biodiversity and function.
Microbial colonization of microplastic particles in aquatic systems
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This review examined how microplastic particles become colonized by diverse microbial communities in aquatic environments, forming the so-called plastisphere. The research highlights that microplastics create novel ecological niches and may facilitate the spread of pathogens and antibiotic resistance genes in freshwater and marine systems.
Microbial Colonization and Degradation of Microplastics in Aquatic Ecosystem: A Review
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This review examines how microorganisms colonize and form biofilms on microplastics in aquatic environments, creating a plastisphere where bacteria and fungi can potentially degrade plastic particles through enzymatic processes.
Responses of natural plastisphere community and zooplankton to microplastic pollution: a review on novel remediation strategies
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This review examines how microbial communities colonize microplastic surfaces in aquatic environments, forming what scientists call the plastisphere, and how these plastic-associated microbes interact with zooplankton. Researchers found that microplastics serve as floating platforms for bacteria, including potentially harmful species, and can transfer these microbes up the food chain through zooplankton ingestion. The study highlights novel bioremediation strategies that harness natural microbial processes to help break down microplastic pollution.
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