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Polyethylene microplastic impairs soil gross nitrification and reduces fertilizer-derived nitrogen uptake in rice
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Using nitrogen isotope labeling, researchers found that polyethylene microplastics significantly impaired gross soil nitrification rates and reduced rice uptake of fertilizer nitrogen. The results indicate that microplastic pollution can undermine nitrogen use efficiency in agriculture, with potential implications for crop yields and fertilizer management.
Microplastics (MPs) pollution has been recognized as a limiting factor for plant growth, yet its effects on nitrogen (N) uptake efficiency and gross nitrification rates remain poorly understood. Here, we conducted a pot experiment using the N labeling method to evaluate the impact of polyethylene MP on soil gross nitrification and rice N uptake from fertilizer. Polyethylene MP exposure significantly inhibited rice growth, chlorophyll synthesis, soil nitrification processes, and N uptake while inducing oxidative stress, with dose-dependent effects. Even low MP concentrations (≥ 0.01 %) reduced (p < 0.05) rice chlorophyll a/b content and ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) amoA gene abundance, while ≥ 0.1 % MPs significantly decreased gross nitrification rates and potential nitrification but increased superoxide dismutase (SOD) and peroxidase (POD) activities. At 1.0 % MPs, rice biomass, N uptake, and ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) amoA abundance were markedly suppressed. Fertilizer-derived N uptake was particularly sensitive to MPs, declining from 25.4 % in MP-free soil to 12.9-19.8 % at ≥ 0.01 % MPs. Notably, MP-induced oxidative stress in rice, rather than soil nitrification inhibition, was identified as the primary driver of reduced fertilizer N assimilation. Our findings highlight the need to mitigate MP contamination through strategies such as reducing MP sources to improve N management in rice agroecosystems.
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Polyethylene microplastic and soil nitrogen dynamics: Unraveling the links between functional genes, microbial communities, and transformation processes
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