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61,005 resultsShowing papers similar to Synergetic effects of chlorinated paraffins and microplastics on microbial communities and nitrogen cycling in deep-sea cold seep sediments
ClearEffects of Different Types of Microplastics on Cold Seep Microbial Diversity and Function
Researchers simulated deep-sea cold seep conditions to study how different microplastics affect microbial communities. They found that microplastics made the plastisphere microbial networks more fragile than surrounding environments and disrupted nitrogen cycling and methane metabolism, while potentially concentrating pathogenic species.
Revealing the response of microbial communities to polyethylene micro(nano)plastics exposure in cold seep sediment
Researchers explored how polyethylene micro- and nanoplastics affect microbial communities in cold seep ocean sediments over a 120-day experiment. While the plastics did not significantly change overall microbial diversity, they did alter the community structure and affected methane-related metabolic processes. The study suggests that plastic pollution could interfere with important deep-sea biogeochemical cycles, including those involved in methane regulation.
Microplastics Affect Anaerobic Oxidation of Methane and Sedimentary Prokaryotic Communities in Cold Seep Areas
Laboratory experiments exposing cold seep seafloor sediments to microplastics for 120 days showed that polyamide and PET microplastics reduced methane oxidation rates to roughly a third of normal and altered the bacterial communities responsible for this process. Cold seep sediments are major global sinks for methane, so microplastic disruption of this microbial activity could have implications for greenhouse gas cycling in deep ocean environments.
Effects of microplastics on cold seep sediment prokaryotic communities
Researchers studied how polyethylene, polystyrene, and polypropylene microplastics affect microbial communities in cold seep sediments over a 120-day incubation period. The study found that microplastics significantly altered bacterial community structure in a type- and concentration-dependent manner, with some bacteria associated with plastic degradation increasing, while archaeal communities were less affected.
Interactions of Microplastics and Methane Seepage in the Deep-Sea Environment
Researchers examined the accumulation of microplastics in cold seep sediments characterized by methane fluid seepage and chemosynthetic ecosystems in the deep sea, detecting 16 types of microplastics with high abundances at sediment surfaces. The findings suggest that cold seep environments act as effective sinks for small-scale microplastics under 100 micrometers and represent an important but overlooked reservoir in the marine carbon cycle.
Microplastic type and concentration affect prokaryotic community structure and species coexistence in deep-sea cold seep sediments
Researchers conducted incubation experiments with cold seep sediments amended with four microplastic types (polyamide, polyethylene, polyethylene terephthalate, and polypropylene) at varying concentrations, finding that both MP type and concentration significantly altered prokaryotic community structure and species coexistence patterns.
Weathered microplastics alter deep sea benthic biogeochemistry and organic matter cycling: insights from a microcosm experiment
Weathered (aged) microplastics deposited in deep-sea sediments were found to alter benthic biogeochemical cycles, affecting nitrogen and carbon processing by seafloor microorganisms. The findings show that plastic pollution can disrupt the chemical ecology of even the most remote deep-ocean environments.
Combined influence of the nanoplastics and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons exposure on microbial community in seawater environment
Researchers studied the individual and combined effects of nanoplastics and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons on microbial communities in seawater. They found that the combination of these two pollutants altered microbial diversity and community structure differently than either pollutant alone. The study suggests that the interaction between nanoplastics and chemical pollutants in the ocean may have complex and unpredictable effects on marine microbial ecosystems.
Co-exposure of microplastics and polychlorinated biphenyls strongly influenced the cycling processes of typical biogenic elements in anoxic soil
Researchers examined how co-exposure to polyethylene microplastics and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) affects the cycling of carbon, nitrogen, iron, and sulfur in oxygen-depleted soil over 255 days. The presence of microplastics enhanced some processes like methane production and iron reduction while inhibiting nitrate reduction and PCB degradation. The study found that microplastics significantly altered the functional microbial communities responsible for these biogeochemical cycles, suggesting that combined plastic and chemical pollution creates more severe effects than either pollutant alone.
A Study of the Effects of Microplastics on Microbial Communities in Marine Sediments
This study investigated how the presence of microplastics in marine sediments affects microbial communities and, specifically, the methane cycle, finding that microplastics significantly altered microbial community structure and function. Since marine sediment microbes play a critical role in regulating greenhouse gas emissions, microplastic contamination could have broader climate-relevant effects beyond direct toxicity.
Microplastics affect organic nitrogen in sediment: The response of organic nitrogen mineralization to microbes and benthic animals
Researchers investigated how different types of microplastics affect organic nitrogen cycling in sediments, measuring the responses of key nitrogen-transforming microorganisms. They found microplastics alter the composition of organic nitrogen and suppress certain nitrogen cycling processes.
Tracing the Century‐Long Evolution of Microplastics Deposition in a Cold Seep
Researchers traced a century of microplastic deposition in a deep-sea cold seep, finding that burial rates increased significantly since the 1930s in non-seepage areas, while methane seepage zones showed lower microplastic levels, suggesting potential microbial degradation of plastics.
Influence of microplastics on the structure and function of deep-sea communities during long-term enrichment processes
Researchers studied how polystyrene microplastics of different sizes and concentrations affect deep-sea microbial communities over 50 days of incubation. They observed that microorganisms caused visible degradation of the plastic surfaces, while the smallest particles and plastic films significantly inhibited bacterial growth and increased reactive oxygen species production. The study reveals that microplastic pollution can substantially alter deep-sea microbial community structure and function.
Warming Modulates Microplastic Impacts on Coastal Nitrogen Cycling by Synergistically Amplifying Sediment Hypoxia and Restructuring the Denitrifying Microbiome
Climate warming and microplastic pollution are converging stressors in coastal environments, but their combined effects on ocean chemistry were poorly understood. This microcosm study found that warming and microplastics interacted in complex, non-additive ways to disrupt nitrogen cycling in coastal sediments—sometimes amplifying each other's harmful effects and sometimes canceling them out, depending on the plastic type and the specific biological process. Most concerning, warming combined with both polyethylene and PBAT microplastics created more intense oxygen-depleted zones in sediments, which can trigger dead zones that suffocate marine life. These findings suggest that the ecological risks of microplastic pollution will worsen as oceans warm, complicating predictions based on either stressor studied alone.
Microplastics induced the differential responses of microbial-driven soil carbon and nitrogen cycles under warming
Researchers examined how the combination of microplastic pollution and warming temperatures affects soil carbon and nitrogen cycling driven by microbial communities. The study found that microplastics altered microbial responses to warming in ways that disrupted both carbon decomposition and nitrogen transformation processes in soil.
“The Good, the Bad and the Double-Sword” Effects of Microplastics and Their Organic Additives in Marine Bacteria
Researchers exposed marine bacteria, including nitrogen-fixing strains, to microplastics and their organic additives, finding both stimulatory and inhibitory 'double-sword' effects on bacterial activities relevant to nutrient cycling and the microbial food web.
Metagenomics reveals combined effects of microplastics and antibiotics on microbial community structure and function in coastal sediments
A metagenomic study of coastal sediments exposed to combined microplastic and antibiotic pollution found that co-exposure altered microbial community composition and significantly elevated the abundance and diversity of antibiotic resistance genes compared to either pollutant alone.
Effect of flumetsulam alone and coexistence with polyethylene microplastics on soil microbial carbon and nitrogen cycles: Elucidation of bacterial community structure, functional gene expression, and enzyme activity
Researchers tested how the herbicide flumetsulam interacts with polyethylene microplastics in soil and found that both individually and together they reduced bacteria and fungi populations. When microplastics were present alongside the herbicide, the soil bacterial community shifted more dramatically, though carbon and nitrogen cycling remained largely unchanged. The study suggests that the combined presence of herbicides and microplastics in agricultural soil creates distinct effects on microbial life compared to either contaminant alone.
Coexistence of microplastics and Cd alters soil N transformation by affecting enzyme activity and ammonia oxidizer abundance
Researchers studied how the combined presence of microplastics and cadmium in soil affects nitrogen cycling, a process essential for soil fertility. They found that the pollutant mixture altered enzyme activity and shifted the balance of ammonia-oxidizing microbial communities more than either contaminant alone. The findings suggest that co-contamination of soils with microplastics and heavy metals could disrupt nutrient cycles critical for plant growth.
Exploring carbon content variation in microplastics sequestrated from seawater to sediment in the Haima cold seep area
Sampling the Haima cold seep in the South China Sea, researchers found that microplastic abundance in the water column increased with methane seepage strength, while the carbon content of microplastics varied with depth and seepage activity. The study suggests that deep-sea cold seeps act as sinks for microplastics and that microbial communities in these oxygen-poor environments may process carbon from plastic particles in ways not yet well understood.
The co-presence of polystyrene nanoplastics and ofloxacin demonstrates combined effects on the structure, assembly, and metabolic activities of marine microbial community
Researchers examined the combined effects of polystyrene nanoplastics and the antibiotic ofloxacin on marine microbial communities. They found that the two pollutants together had a greater impact on bacterial community structure and metabolic activity than either one alone. The study suggests that nanoplastics and antibiotics co-occurring in the ocean may work together to disrupt the microorganisms that support marine ecosystem health.
Unveiling microplastic's role in nitrogen cycling: Metagenomic insights from estuarine sediment microcosms
Researchers used metagenomic analysis to examine how polyethylene and polystyrene microplastics affect nitrogen cycling in estuarine sediments. They found that microplastics altered the abundance of genes involved in key nitrogen transformation processes like nitrification and denitrification. The study reveals that microplastic pollution in estuaries may disrupt important biogeochemical cycles that support aquatic ecosystem health.
Combined effects of microplastics and nitrogen on bivalve‐mediated biogeochemical cycling
Researchers investigated the combined effects of microplastic pollution and excess nitrogen on coastal sediment ecosystems mediated by bivalves. They found that when both stressors were present together, nitrogen processing responses changed in ways not seen with either stressor alone, and sediment health conditions worsened significantly. The study suggests that multiple environmental stressors can interact in unexpected ways that single-stressor studies would miss.
Discrepancy strategies of sediment abundant and rare microbial communities in response to floating microplastic disturbances: Study using a microcosmic experiment
Using microcosm experiments with fluvial sediment exposed to four plastic types, researchers found that floating microplastics altered sediment microbial diversity and reduced bacteria involved in carbon and nitrogen cycling. Abundant microbial taxa were more sensitive to microplastic disturbance than rare taxa, and microplastics decreased network complexity and increased negative species interactions in microbial communities.