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61,005 resultsShowing papers similar to Differential carbon accumulation of microbial necromass and plant lignin by pollution of polyethylene and polylactic acid microplastics in soil
ClearBiodegradable microplastics decreased plant-derived and increased microbial-derived carbon formation in soil: a two-year field trial
A two-year field experiment compared the effects of conventional (polypropylene) and biodegradable (polylactic acid, PLA) microplastics on soil carbon cycling in agricultural soil. Researchers found that while neither plastic type changed total soil carbon levels, PLA microplastics significantly reduced plant-derived carbon (lignin) by 32% while boosting microbial-derived carbon, suggesting that "biodegradable" plastics still meaningfully alter soil biology and chemistry. This matters because it challenges the assumption that biodegradable plastics are environmentally benign once they break down in farmland.
Polyethylene microplastics distinctly affect soil microbial community and carbon and nitrogen cycling during plant litter decomposition
Researchers measured how polyethylene microplastics affect soil microbial communities and carbon cycling in agricultural soils, finding that microplastic addition shifted microbial diversity and suppressed key carbon mineralization processes. The results suggest microplastic accumulation in farmland could impair soil carbon storage.
Discrepant soil microbial community and C cycling function responses to conventional and biodegradable microplastics
Scientists compared how conventional polyethylene and biodegradable polylactic acid microplastics affect soil microbial communities and carbon cycling. Researchers found that the two types of microplastics had markedly different effects, with biodegradable plastics causing more changes to microbial community structure and carbon-related gene activity. The study suggests that biodegradable plastics, while designed to be more environmentally friendly, may still significantly alter soil biology.
Microplastic-Induced Alterations in Soil Aggregate-Associated Carbon Stabilization Pathways: Evidence from δ13C Signature Analysis
Researchers conducted a year-long field experiment to understand how different types of microplastics affect carbon storage in soil. They found that conventional plastics like polyethylene and PVC destabilized soil structures and released stored carbon, while biodegradable plastics like PLA and PHA helped maintain soil integrity. The study provides evidence that the type of plastic contaminating agricultural soils significantly influences whether carbon is retained or lost.
Mechanism of polyethylene and biodegradable microplastic aging effects on soil organic carbon fractions in different land-use types
Researchers compared how polyethylene and biodegradable microplastics at different stages of aging affect soil organic carbon fractions across various land-use types. The study found that both types of microplastics altered soil carbon dynamics, but the effects depended on the plastic type, its degree of aging, and the specific land-use context.
Microplastic biodegradability does not modify plant carbon input in soil but accelerate soil carbon loss in agroecosystems
Researchers investigated how non-biodegradable polyethylene (PE) and biodegradable polylactic acid (PLA) microplastics affect plant carbon input and soil carbon turnover in a dryland agroecosystem over two years using 13CO2 pulse-labeling. They found that both microplastic types did not significantly alter plant carbon fixation but accelerated soil carbon loss, with implications for climate change feedbacks in agricultural soils.
Insights into effects of conventional and biodegradable microplastics on organic carbon decomposition in different soil aggregates
Researchers compared how conventional polypropylene and biodegradable polylactic acid microplastics affect carbon decomposition in different sizes of soil aggregates. Both types of microplastics increased carbon dioxide emissions from soil, but the effects varied depending on particle type, concentration, and aggregate size. The study reveals that microplastics can alter soil carbon cycling at a fundamental structural level, with biodegradable plastics not necessarily being more benign than conventional ones.
Effects of microplastics and carbon nanotubes on soil geochemical properties and bacterial communities
In a 100-day soil experiment, researchers found that both conventional polyethylene and biodegradable polylactic acid microplastics significantly altered soil chemistry, nutrient levels, and bacterial communities. At higher concentrations, microplastics reduced nitrogen and phosphorus availability and changed the types of bacteria present, which could affect soil fertility. These findings matter because healthy soil bacteria are essential for growing the food we eat, and widespread microplastic contamination could quietly undermine agricultural productivity.
Effect of different polymers of microplastics on soil organic carbon and nitrogen – A mesocosm experiment
Researchers found that adding polyethylene and biodegradable microplastics to agricultural soil altered carbon and nitrogen dynamics, with biodegradable microplastics having stronger effects on soil organic carbon decomposition and nutrient cycling than conventional plastics.
[Effect of Polyethylene Microplastics on Microbial Necromass Carbon in Different Land Use Type Soils].
A lab experiment found that polyethylene microplastics from agricultural film disturb how soil microbes process and store carbon across different land-use types, with low doses increasing nitrogen limitation and high doses releasing extra carbon. This matters because the spread of plastic film fragments in farmland soils could subtly degrade soil fertility and alter the carbon and nitrogen cycles that underpin agricultural productivity.
Microplastics alter soil structure and microbial community composition
Researchers found that both conventional polyethylene and biodegradable polylactic acid microplastics break down soil structure in similar ways, increasing the proportion of smaller soil clumps while reducing larger, more stable ones. The microplastics also significantly altered soil bacterial communities, with effects varying by particle size. This matters because changes to soil health can affect the food we grow and the broader ecosystem services that soil provides.
Microplastic effects on carbon cycling processes in soils
Researchers reviewed how microplastics affect carbon cycling processes in soils, including their influence on microbial activity, plant growth, and litter decomposition. Since microplastics are themselves carbon-based materials, they can directly alter soil carbon stocks while also indirectly shifting microbial communities. The study calls for a major research effort to understand the widespread effects of microplastics on soil functioning and terrestrial ecosystem health.
Microplastics from conventional and biodegradable mulch films alter microbial necromass accumulation and organic carbon sequestration in farmland soils
Researchers compared how microplastics from conventional polyethylene and biodegradable mulch films affect soil organic carbon storage over 120 days. They found that both types of microplastics altered microbial activity and reduced the accumulation of microbial-derived carbon in soil. The study suggests that even biodegradable plastics, once broken into microplastics, may interfere with soil carbon sequestration in farmland.
Microplastic effects on soil organic matter dynamics and bacterial communities under contrasting soil environments
Researchers compared microplastic effects on soil organic matter dynamics and bacterial communities across contrasting soil environments, finding that the type of microplastic polymer and soil conditions together determine whether microbial activity and carbon cycling are stimulated or suppressed.
Data from: Microplastic biodegradability does not modify plant carbon input in soil but accelerate soil carbon loss in agroecosystems
Researchers found that both non-biodegradable polyethylene and biodegradable polylactic acid microplastics accelerated soil carbon loss in a two-year dryland field experiment, with biodegradable plastics not modifying plant carbon input but both types disrupting the soil-plant-atmosphere carbon continuum.
Insights into soil microbial assemblages and nitrogen cycling function responses to conventional and biodegradable microplastics
Researchers compared how biodegradable polylactic acid and conventional PVC microplastics affect soil bacteria and nitrogen cycling processes. They found that both types of microplastics altered microbial communities, but biodegradable plastics had distinct effects on nitrogen-processing bacteria and did not simply behave as a harmless alternative. The study suggests that switching to biodegradable plastics may change rather than eliminate the impact of microplastic contamination on soil health.
Microplastics alter microbial structure and assembly processes in different soil types: Driving effects of environmental factors
Researchers investigated how biodegradable polylactic acid and conventional polyethylene microplastics affect soil microbial communities across different soil types. They found that PLA increased dissolved organic carbon and pH while decreasing nitrogen availability, whereas polyethylene had contrasting effects depending on soil type. The study reveals that microplastic impacts on microbial community structure and assembly processes are soil-type-specific, with dissolved organic carbon driving changes in red soil and pH being the primary factor in fluvo-aquic soil.
Microplastics Trigger Soil Dissolved Organic Carbon and Nutrient Turnover by Strengthening Microbial Network Connectivity and Cross-Trophic Interactions
This study found that polyethylene and PVC microplastics in agricultural soil significantly altered the microbial communities responsible for breaking down organic carbon and recycling nutrients. The microplastics strengthened connections between bacteria, fungi, and other microorganisms in ways that accelerated carbon and nutrient turnover. These changes to fundamental soil processes could affect crop nutrition and long-term soil health on farms contaminated with microplastics.
Soil nutrient levels regulate the effect of soil microplastic contamination on microbial element metabolism and carbon use efficiency
Researchers conducted greenhouse experiments to examine how different types of microplastics in soil affect microbial nutrient metabolism and carbon use efficiency. They found that degradable polylactic acid microplastics stimulated microbial activity differently than non-degradable polyethylene, and that soil nutrient levels played a key role in regulating these effects. The study suggests that understanding the interaction between microplastics and soil nutrients is critical for predicting impacts on soil carbon cycling.
Microplastics-driven reconfiguration of organic carbon fractions in lake sediments: mineralization and stabilization dynamics of biodegradable polymers
Microplastics in soil were found to alter the composition and distribution of organic carbon fractions, with implications for soil fertility and carbon sequestration. The study reveals that microplastic contamination can reshape the biogeochemical cycling of carbon in terrestrial ecosystems.
Microplastics alter soil carbon cycling: Effects on carbon storage, CO 2 and CH 4 emission and microbial community
This systematic review examines how microplastics in soil affect carbon cycling, including greenhouse gas emissions and carbon storage. The effects depend heavily on plastic type and size, with biodegradable plastics generally having a bigger impact. Understanding these soil-level changes matters because disrupted carbon cycles can worsen climate change, which in turn affects the food and water systems we all depend on.
[Effects of Microplastic Pollution on Microbial Activity and Carbon Metabolism Function in Soil].
A laboratory experiment found that both conventional polystyrene and biodegradable polylactic acid microplastics significantly disrupt soil microbial communities, reducing enzyme activities and cutting soil carbon metabolism by up to 82% at high concentrations. Notably, biodegradable PLA caused more harm than conventional PS, likely because PLA degrades into dissolved organic matter and smaller particles that are more toxic to soil microbes. This challenges the assumption that biodegradable plastics are environmentally safe and highlights risks to nutrient cycling in contaminated soils.
Effects of Microplastics on Soil Carbon Mineralization: The Crucial Role of Oxygen Dynamics and Electron Transfer
Researchers investigated how polyethylene and polylactic acid microplastics affect carbon cycling in soil, focusing on oxygen dynamics and electron transfer processes. They found that microplastics alter dissolved oxygen distribution at the microscale, which in turn influences how organic matter breaks down and whether carbon is released as CO2 or methane. The study reveals a previously overlooked mechanism by which microplastics can disrupt fundamental soil carbon processes.
The Structural and Functional Responses of Rhizosphere Bacteria to Biodegradable Microplastics in the Presence of Biofertilizers
Researchers studied how biodegradable microplastics interact with biofertilizers in crop soils and found that even though biodegradable plastics are designed as greener alternatives, they still significantly altered soil bacterial communities and disrupted carbon metabolism pathways. The findings suggest that biodegradable microplastics may affect soil health differently than conventional plastics, but are not necessarily harmless.