Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Mitigation of microplastic toxicity in soybean by synthetic bacterial community and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi interaction: Altering carbohydrate metabolism, hormonal transduction, and genes associated with lipid and protein metabolism

Researchers found that inoculating soybean plants with a combination of mycorrhizal fungi and beneficial bacteria helped protect them from microplastic-induced stress, improving biomass, seed quality, antioxidant defenses, and hormone balance. The study suggests that soil microbe communities could be harnessed as a sustainable strategy to help crops cope with growing microplastic contamination in agricultural soils.

2024 Plant Stress 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Regulatory Mechanisms of Plant Growth-Promoting Bacteria in Alleviating Microplastic and Heavy Metal Combined Pollution: Insights from Plant Growth and Metagenomic Analysis

Researchers used metagenomic sequencing to investigate how plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB) mitigate the combined toxicity of microplastics and heavy metals on plant growth. PGPB inoculation restored rhizosphere microbial function and reduced plant stress, revealing microbiome-mediated mechanisms for alleviating mixed pollutant toxicity.

2025 Agronomy
Article Tier 2

Microplastics modify plant-arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi systems in a Pb-Zn-contaminated soil

Researchers examined how six types of microplastics affect sweet sorghum growth and soil fungal communities in soil contaminated with lead and zinc. They found that microplastics generally did not inhibit plant growth and in some cases promoted it, but they increased the uptake of heavy metals into plant shoots. The study suggests that microplastics may worsen the risks of heavy metal contamination in agricultural soils by enhancing metal accumulation in crops.

2025 Applied Soil Ecology 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Ecological and physiological risks of micro- and nanoplastics in rice agroecosystems: Challenges and engineering-based mitigation approaches

Researchers reviewed how micro- and nanoplastics harm rice — a staple crop feeding billions — by disrupting root growth, reducing photosynthesis, altering soil microbes, and making heavy metals more available to plants. The review proposes that ecological engineering strategies like microbial bioremediation and organic soil amendments could help protect agricultural land from plastic contamination.

2026 Journal of Ecological Engineering
Article Tier 2

Life-long impacts of nanoplastics to rice plant (Oryza sativa L.): Decreased grain yield with perturbed metallome and soil microbiome

Researchers studied how nano-sized PET plastic particles affect rice plants throughout their entire life cycle at concentrations found in real-world environments. They found that nanoplastic exposure reduced grain quality and yield, disrupted mineral nutrient balance, and significantly altered the soil microbial community. The study highlights a potential threat to global food security, since rice is a staple food for billions of people.

2025 Journal of Hazardous Materials 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic pollution in rice systems: Impacts, mechanisms and green remediation strategies

This review examines how microplastic contamination in rice paddies affects soil health, microbial communities, and crop yields, finding that the particles disrupt nutrient cycling, impair root growth, and reduce grain production. Researchers evaluated a range of remediation strategies including phytoremediation, microbial degradation, algae-based approaches, and genetic engineering techniques. The study highlights the urgent need for integrated solutions to protect food security from growing plastic pollution in agricultural soils.

2025 The Science of The Total Environment 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of nanoplastics on the growth, transcription, and metabolism of rice (Oryza sativa L.) and synergistic effects in the presence of iron plaque and humic acid

This study examined how nanoplastics affect rice plant growth, finding that the tiny particles were absorbed by roots and entered plant cells. Nanoplastic exposure reduced important enzyme activity and protein levels in roots, disrupting normal plant metabolism. The presence of iron plaque and humic acid in the soil changed how much nanoplastic the plants took up, suggesting that real-world soil conditions play a key role in how crops are affected.

2024 Environmental Pollution 9 citations
Article Tier 2

Mechanistic insight into the intensification of arsenic toxicity to rice (Oryza sativa L.) by nanoplastic: Phytohormone and glutathione metabolism modulation

Nanoplastics at environmentally realistic levels did not harm rice plants on their own, but when combined with arsenic they made arsenic toxicity significantly worse, reducing plant growth by up to 23%. The nanoplastics increased arsenic uptake by disrupting plant hormones and weakening the plant's natural detoxification systems. This is concerning because rice is a staple food for billions of people, and agricultural soils increasingly contain both nanoplastics and heavy metals.

2024 Journal of Hazardous Materials 22 citations
Article Tier 2

Fate of nano/microplastics and associated toxic pollutants in paddy ecosystems: Current knowledge and future perspectives

Researchers reviewed how micro- and nanoplastics enter rice paddies through irrigation, mulch films, and atmospheric deposition, then harm soil health and rice plant growth by disrupting nutrient cycles and increasing oxidative stress. Their findings are especially significant because rice feeds more than half the world's population, yet research on plastic contamination in paddy systems remains very limited.

2024 Earth Critical Zone 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Phosphorus fertiliser application mitigates the negative effects of microplastic on soil microbes and rice growth

Researchers found that adding phosphorus fertilizer to soil contaminated with microplastics helped counteract the negative effects of the plastics on rice growth and soil microbial communities. The microplastics alone disrupted bacterial interactions and suppressed plant development, but fertilizer application restored much of the lost productivity. The study offers practical guidance for managing agricultural soils in areas affected by microplastic pollution.

2023 Journal of Hazardous Materials 20 citations
Article Tier 2

Multiomics analysis reveals a substantial decrease in nanoplastics uptake and associated impacts by nano zinc oxide in fragrant rice (Oryza sativa L.)

Researchers found that nano zinc oxide (nZnO) particles form aggregates with polystyrene nanoplastics in the root zone of fragrant rice, physically blocking nanoplastic uptake, while transcriptomic and metabolomic analyses revealed that nZnO also restored antioxidant defenses and rescued aroma compound biosynthesis that nanoplastics had disrupted.

2024 Journal of Hazardous Materials 22 citations
Article Tier 2

Alteration of the Rhizosphere Microbiota and Growth Performance of Barley Infected with Fusarium graminearum and Screening of an Antagonistic Bacterial Strain (Bacillus amyloliquefaciens)

Researchers examined how polyethylene microplastics alter the rhizosphere microbiome and growth performance of barley infected with a root pathogen, finding that MP contamination shifted microbial community composition and exacerbated disease symptoms in infected plants.

2025 Microorganisms
Article Tier 2

Rhizosphere nutrient dynamics and physiological responses of Oryza sativa L. under polyethylene terephthalate microplastic stress

Researchers exposed rice (Oryza sativa) to PET microplastics and found that the particles were absorbed by roots and translocated to aerial tissues, significantly inhibiting chlorophyll production, inducing oxidative stress (with malondialdehyde increasing by 175% at higher doses), and disrupting nitrogen, carbon, and phosphorus cycling genes in the rhizosphere.

2025 Plant Physiology and Biochemistry
Article Tier 2

Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungus Alleviates Charged Nanoplastic Stress in Host Plants via Enhanced Defense-Related Gene Expressions and Hyphal Capture

Researchers discovered that a beneficial root fungus helped lettuce plants cope with nanoplastic stress, boosting shoot growth by 25 to 100 percent compared to unprotected plants. The fungus captured nanoplastics on its thread-like structures and activated defense genes in the plant. The study suggests that naturally occurring soil fungi could play a role in reducing the harmful effects of nanoplastics on crops.

2024 Environmental Science & Technology 25 citations
Article Tier 2

Bacterial-charged biochar enhances plant growth and mitigates microplastic toxicity by altering microbial communities and soil metabolism

Researchers tested whether adding bacteria and biochar (a charcoal-like material) to microplastic-contaminated paddy soil could help rice plants recover, finding that the combined treatment increased shoot weight by over 100% and dramatically improved nutrient uptake genes. The treatment also enriched beneficial soil microbes and reduced oxidative stress in rice, offering a promising strategy for restoring agricultural soils polluted with microplastics.

2025 Plant Stress 3 citations
Article Tier 2

‘OMICS’ Studies on Rhizosphere-Microorganism Interactions in Soils

This review covers OMICS approaches—genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics—used to study how plant root microbiomes interact with soil in the context of pollutants including microplastics and heavy metals. It highlights how rhizosphere microorganisms mediate phytoremediation and discusses multi-resistance challenges when pharmaceuticals and pesticides co-contaminate soils.

2025 BENTHAM SCIENCE PUBLISHERS eBooks
Meta Analysis Tier 1

The effect of microplastic pollution on rice growth, paddy soil properties, and greenhouse gas emissions: A global meta-analysis

This global meta-analysis of 40 studies found that microplastics reduce rice biomass by inducing oxidative stress and inhibiting photosynthesis, while depleting soil nitrogen, phosphorus, and organic carbon. Microplastics also stimulate nitrous oxide emissions from paddy soils, posing a dual threat to food security and climate through impaired rice production and increased greenhouse gas output.

2025 Environmental Research 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Zinc ions enhance tolerance to nanoplastics stress in rice seedlings: Advancing the development and optimization of traditional zinc fertilizers

Researchers tested whether traditional zinc sulfate fertilizer could help rice seedlings tolerate polystyrene microplastic stress, as an alternative to zinc oxide nanoparticles which carry their own environmental risks. They found that appropriate zinc levels reduced oxidative damage through different mechanisms in shoots versus roots, restoring photosynthesis and development. The findings offer a practical, lower-risk strategy for protecting crops from microplastic contamination in agricultural soils.

2025 Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics affect rice (Oryza sativa L.) quality by interfering metabolite accumulation and energy expenditure pathways: A field study

Researchers conducted a field study examining how polystyrene microplastics affect rice grain quality at the molecular level using metabolomic and transcriptomic analysis. They found that microplastic exposure interfered with metabolite accumulation and energy pathways in the rice plants, ultimately reducing grain quality. The study provides real-world evidence that microplastic contamination in agricultural soils can directly compromise the nutritional quality of a major food crop.

2021 Journal of Hazardous Materials 193 citations
Article Tier 2

Image 1_Synthetic microbiota for microplastic degradation modulates rhizosphere fungal diversity and metabolic function in highland barley.tif

Researchers examined how polystyrene microplastics and a microplastic-degrading synthetic microbiota consortium (MPDSM) affect highland barley grain nutrition and rhizosphere fungal communities, finding the MPDSM achieved up to 19.9% plastic weight reduction. The study demonstrates that microbiome-based remediation can mitigate some of the negative effects of microplastic contamination on crop rhizosphere ecology.

2025 Figshare
Article Tier 2

The mycorrhizal symbiosis: research frontiers in genomics, ecology, and agricultural application

This review covers the latest advances in understanding mycorrhizal fungi, which form partnerships with plant roots to help them absorb nutrients and resist stress. While not directly about microplastics, mycorrhizal networks play a critical role in soil health, and research shows that microplastic contamination in soil can disrupt these beneficial fungal partnerships. Healthy mycorrhizal networks may also help buffer plants against some negative effects of soil pollutants, including microplastics.

2024 New Phytologist 187 citations
Article Tier 2

Synthetic microbiota for microplastic degradation modulates rhizosphere fungal diversity and metabolic function in highland barley

Researchers examined how a synthetic microbiota consortium (MPDSM) designed for microplastic degradation affects rhizosphere fungal diversity and nutritional quality in highland barley grown in polystyrene-contaminated soil. The MPDSM achieved up to 19.9% weight loss in large microplastic particles and significantly modulated rhizosphere fungal metabolic function, suggesting microbiome-based remediation can partly offset crop quality impacts.

2025 Frontiers in Microbiology
Article Tier 2

Indole-3-acetic acid and zinc synergistically mitigate positively charged nanoplastic-induced damage in rice

Positively charged 80 nm polystyrene nanoplastics had the greatest impact on rice seedling growth, reducing dry biomass by 41% and root length by 46%, while supplemental zinc and indole-3-acetic acid together significantly alleviated the nanoplastic-induced growth inhibition.

2023 Journal of Hazardous Materials 18 citations
Article Tier 2

Physiological and Multi-Omics Insights into Trichoderma harzianum Alleviating Aged Microplastic Stress in Nicotiana benthamiana

Researchers found that the biocontrol fungus Trichoderma harzianum T4 alleviates stress caused by aged PBAT biodegradable microplastics in Nicotiana benthamiana plants, as demonstrated through physiological and multi-omics analyses. The fungus modulated plant metabolic and transcriptomic responses, suggesting a promising biological approach to mitigating biodegradable microplastic impacts in agricultural systems.

2025 International Journal of Molecular Sciences