Article ? AI-assigned paper type based on the abstract. Classification may not be perfect — flag errors using the feedback button. Tier 2 ? Original research — experimental, observational, or case-control study. Direct primary evidence. Marine & Wildlife Sign in to save

The ecology of the plastisphere: Microbial composition, function, assembly, and network in the freshwater and seawater ecosystems

Water Research 2021 311 citations ? Citation count from OpenAlex, updated daily. May differ slightly from the publisher's own count. Score: 65 ? 0–100 AI score estimating relevance to the microplastics field. Papers below 30 are filtered from public browse.

Longfei Wang, Yandong Gan, Changchao Li, Changchao Li, Changchao Li, Changchao Li, Jian Liu Jian Liu Jian Liu Changchao Li, Mengjie Chang, Mengjie Chang, Mengjie Chang, Longfei Wang, Jian Liu Changchao Li, Lifei Wang, Mengjie Chang, Longfei Wang, Changchao Li, Changchao Li, Yandong Gan, Yandong Gan, Mengjie Chang, Shuping Ji, Changchao Li, Changchao Li, Jian Liu Shuping Ji, Jian Liu Jian Liu Jian Liu Mengjie Chang, Changchao Li, Longfei Wang, Longfei Wang, Changchao Li, Jian Liu Changchao Li, Yandong Gan, Jian Liu Lifei Wang, Longfei Wang, Longfei Wang, Longfei Wang, Changchao Li, Jian Liu Changchao Li, Jian Liu Jian Liu Jian Liu Changchao Li, Yandong Gan, Longfei Wang, Longfei Wang, Changchao Li, Longfei Wang, Changchao Li, Changchao Li, Changchao Li, Changchao Li, Jian Liu Jian Liu

Summary

Researchers studied the communities of bacteria and fungi that colonize microplastic surfaces in freshwater and seawater, forming what scientists call the plastisphere. These microplastic-associated communities were distinctly different from those in surrounding water, and included a higher proportion of disease-causing organisms and species involved in pollutant degradation. The findings suggest that microplastics create new habitats that can harbor pathogens and alter natural microbial ecosystems in ways that may affect water quality and human health.

Study Type Environmental

Microplastics provide a unique habitat for microorganisms, forming the plastisphere. Yet the ecology of the plastisphere, including the microbial composition, functions, assembly processes, and interaction networks, needs to be understood. Here, we collected microplastics and their surrounding water samples in freshwater and seawater ecosystems. The bacterial and fungal communities of the plastisphere and the aquatic environment were studied based on 16S and internal transcribed spacer (ITS) high-throughput sequencing. We found that the plastisphere had a distinct microbial community and recruited a noteworthy proportion of unique species compared to the aquatic environment community, potentially altering ecosystem microbial community and causing microbial invasion. Using a random-forest machine-learning model, we identified a group of biomarkers that could best distinguish the plastisphere from the aquatic environment. Significant differences exist in microbial functions between the plastisphere and the aquatic environment, including functions of pathogenicity, compound degradation, as well as functions related to the cycling of carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur. And these functional differences were expressed differently in freshwater and seawater ecosystems. The oxidation-reduction potential, salinity, the concentrations of nitrogen-related ions (NO, NO, and NH), and the concentration of dissolved organic carbon in the surrounding environment drive the variation of the plastisphere. But environmental physicochemical properties explain less of the microbial community variation in the plastisphere than that in the aquatic environment. Niche-based processes govern the assembly of the plastisphere community, while neutral-based processes dominate the community assembly of the aquatic environment. Furthermore, compared to the aquatic environment, the plastisphere has a network of less complexity, more modules, higher modularity, and more competitive links in freshwater ecosystems, but the pattern is reversed in seawater ecosystems. Altogether, the microbial ecology of the new anthropogenic ecosystem-plastisphere-is unique and exerts different effects in freshwater and seawater ecosystems.

Read via DOI PubMed

Share this paper

Post Share Share Pin Email