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Different surface modified polystyrene nanoplastics can affect growth adaptability of Skeletonema costatum to heat stress
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Researchers assessed how heat stress and polystyrene nanoplastics (PS, PS-NH2, PS-COOH) interact to affect the growth of the marine microalga Skeletonema costatum. Elevated temperature stimulated algal growth, but all three nanoplastic surface modifications impaired thermal acclimatization, with transcriptome analysis revealing that nanoplastics significantly disrupted the gene expression responses needed to adapt to heat stress.
Microalgae play an essential role in maintaining the balance of the marine ecosystem, but they are often more vulnerable to global change and environmental pollution. In this study, we assessed the effects of heat stress (HS) and polystyrene nanoplastics (NPs) with different surface modifications (PS, PS-NH2, and PS-COOH) on the growth of microalgae Skeletonema costatum (S. costatum). The results indicate that elevated temperature stimulated growth in S. costatum, but NPs impaired their thermal acclimatization. Transcriptome analysis showed that NPs significantly influence the transcriptome of S. costatum under HS in a surface group-dependent manner. The microalgae support growth under elevated temperature by increasing energy production. However, NPs altered these responses, particularly in the HS + (PS-NH2) group. The study provides new insights into how microalgae respond to dual stressors of elevated temperature and NPs, highlighting the need for further research on long-term stress effects to understand microalgal adaptation mechanisms under climate change scenarios.
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Researchers examined how nanoplastics with different surface coatings affect a common marine microalga at both the cellular and molecular level. They found that surface modifications significantly influenced the toxicity of the particles, with some coatings causing greater damage to cell membranes and photosynthesis. The study highlights that the chemical surface properties of nanoplastics, not just their size, play a key role in determining their environmental impact.
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