Enhancing the mycoremediation potential: The multifaceted role of fulvic acid in polystyrene microplastics degradation by Phanerochaete chrysosporium

Summary

Researchers found that adding fulvic acid nearly doubled the degradation rate of polystyrene microplastics by the fungus Phanerochaete chrysosporium, increasing breakdown from 14% to 25% over 21 days. Fulvic acid acted through multiple mechanisms — physically etching the plastic surface to improve bioaccessibility, upregulating fungal stress and energy metabolism genes, and accelerating chemical transformation of degradation intermediates — revealing a coupled abiotic-biotic pathway relevant to microplastic fate in natural environments.