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Effect of Polystyrene Microplastics of Different Sizes to Escherichia coli and Bacillus cereus
Summary
Researchers exposed Gram-negative E. coli and Gram-positive Bacillus cereus to polystyrene particles of different sizes and found opposite effects — PS inhibited E. coli growth while promoting B. cereus growth — suggesting that microbial cell wall structure determines whether plastic particles are harmful or beneficial to bacterial growth.
The toxicity of polystyrene (PS) particles of different sizes was investigated using Gram-negative Escherichia coli and Gram-positive Bacillus cereus. PS particles could inhibit the cell growth of E. coli but promote the cell growth of B. cereus, and this difference might be attributed to different composition in their cell walls and the different interactions between the two bacteria and PS particles. Direct adhesion of E. coli cells on the surface of 5 μm PS microbeads by flagella was observed, indicating the putative role of E. coli on biofilm formation of plastisphere. The regulations of malondialdehyde, lactate dehydrogenase and glutathione were similar between the two bacteria, so the difference in the toxicity effect of PS between the two bacteria was not caused by the antioxidant activity. The overall results of the present study could help to understand the responses of different bacteria to microplastic exposure.