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Metagenomic insight into the ecological effects of the plastisphere in coastal salt marshes

Marine Pollution Bulletin 2025 1 citation ? Citation count from OpenAlex, updated daily. May differ slightly from the publisher's own count. Score: 43 ? 0–100 AI score estimating relevance to the microplastics field. Papers below 30 are filtered from public browse.

Xinqing Zou Feng Yuan, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Feng Yuan, Teng Wang, Yongcheng Ding, Teng Wang, Teng Wang, Teng Wang, Feng Yuan, Yongcheng Ding, Feng Yuan, Feng Yuan, Feng Yuan, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Hongyu Chen, Hongyu Chen, Teng Wang, Teng Wang, Teng Wang, Teng Wang, Teng Wang, Yongcheng Ding, Xinqing Zou Xinqing Zou Xinqing Zou Xinqing Zou Xinqing Zou Xinqing Zou Yue Xue, Junjie Wang, Yongcheng Ding, Xinqing Zou Teng Wang, Xinqing Zou Xinqing Zou Yue Xue, Yongcheng Ding, Teng Wang, Yongcheng Ding, Teng Wang, Yongcheng Ding, Junjie Wang, Junjie Wang, Teng Wang, Teng Wang, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Teng Wang, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Teng Wang, Teng Wang, Teng Wang, Feng Yuan, Hongyu Chen, Hongyu Chen, Qihang Liao, Xinqing Zou Ming Lü, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Qihang Liao, Feng Yuan, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Hongyu Chen, Yongcheng Ding, Qihang Liao, Yongcheng Ding, Qihang Liao, Xinqing Zou Feng Yuan, Xinqing Zou Yongcheng Ding, Teng Wang, Feng Yuan, Feng Yuan, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Teng Wang, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Feng Yuan, Qihang Liao, Hongyu Chen, Teng Wang, Yongcheng Ding, Guanghe Fu, Teng Wang, Yongcheng Ding, Qihang Liao, Qihang Liao, Qihang Liao, Yongcheng Ding, Xinqing Zou Guanghe Fu, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Teng Wang, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Yue Xue, Feng Yuan, Yongcheng Ding, Feng Yuan, Feng Yuan, Feng Yuan, Yongcheng Ding, Teng Wang, Teng Wang, Teng Wang, Hongyu Chen, Yue Xue, Yue Xue, Yue Xue, Feng Yuan, Guanghe Fu, Guanghe Fu, Hongyu Chen, Hongyu Chen, Guanghe Fu, Qihang Liao, Feng Yuan, Guanghe Fu, Qihang Liao, Yongcheng Ding, Xinqing Zou Yongcheng Ding, Guanghe Fu, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Yongcheng Ding, Teng Wang, Guanghe Fu, Guanghe Fu, Ming Lü, Guanghe Fu, Guanghe Fu, Guanghe Fu, Guanghe Fu, Guanghe Fu, Guanghe Fu, Guanghe Fu, Guanghe Fu, Guanghe Fu, Guanghe Fu, Guanghe Fu, Guanghe Fu, Yongcheng Ding, Xinqing Zou Xinqing Zou Xinqing Zou Penghua Qiu, Guanghe Fu, Yongcheng Ding, Teng Wang, Guanghe Fu, Teng Wang, Xinqing Zou Guanghe Fu, Xinqing Zou Xinqing Zou Guanghe Fu, Xinqing Zou Teng Wang, Guanghe Fu, Guanghe Fu, Penghua Qiu, Xinqing Zou

Summary

Microplastics in coastal salt marshes don't just sit there — they create a distinct microbial habitat called the "plastisphere" that alters the way nutrients cycle through these carbon-rich ecosystems. A year-long field study in China found that plastisphere microbes showed different patterns of nitrogen and sulfur cycling depending on whether they were in tidal or upland zones, and that antibiotic resistance genes were enriched on plastic surfaces throughout. These findings suggest that microplastic pollution in salt marshes — critical ecosystems for carbon storage and coastal protection — may be quietly reshaping the microbial processes that keep them functioning.

Microplastics (MPs) introduce a unique ecological niche for microorganisms, termed the "plastisphere". Coastal salt marshes are critical blue‑carbon systems and MP sinks. However, the impacts of the plastisphere on major elemental cycling in coastal salt marshes remain poorly understood. To answer this important question, we conducted a 1-year field experiment in both the intertidal (Spartina alterniflora, SA) and supratidal (Phragmites australis, PA) zones of Yancheng salt marshes in China and investigated the dynamics using metagenomics. Results show pronounced heterogeneity in the ecological effects of the plastisphere in intertidal and supratidal zones. At the SA site, plastisphere communities showed increased gene abundance for nitrogen fixation, assimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium, and thiosulfate oxidation (by sulfur oxidation complex). In contrast, at the PA site, plastisphere communities exhibited elevated gene abundance for carbon degradation, dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium, and sulfite oxidation. Antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) and pathogens were enriched in the plastisphere, with different compositions at SA and PA sites and some taxa exclusively present in the plastisphere despite low abundance. These findings highlight the plastisphere's potential to modulate biogeochemical processes and antibiotic resistance in salt marshes, providing a foundation for assessing MPs' ecological roles in these critical habitats.

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