Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

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.

2021 PLoS Biology 503 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

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.

2024 Cambridge Prisms Plastics 15 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of microplastics on microbial community and greenhouse gas emission in soil: A critical review

This review examines how microplastics in soil affect microbial communities and greenhouse gas emissions, finding that microplastics can alter the abundance and activity of soil bacteria in ways that increase carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide release. The plastics change soil structure and chemistry, creating conditions that favor certain gas-producing microbes over others. These effects could worsen climate change while also disrupting soil fertility, with indirect consequences for food production.

2024 Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety 14 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in agricultural soil: Unveiling their role in shaping soil properties and driving greenhouse gas emissions

This review examines how microplastics in agricultural soils affect carbon and nitrogen cycles and alter greenhouse gas emissions. Researchers found that microplastics reduce soil water retention, decrease soil respiration, and increase emissions of carbon monoxide, methane, and nitrous oxide. The study reveals that microplastic contamination in farmland may have broader climate implications by disrupting the soil processes that regulate greenhouse gas fluxes.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 13 citations
Article Tier 2

Role of soil microplastic pollution in climate change

This review examined the bidirectional relationship between soil microplastic pollution and climate change, exploring how microplastics affect soil carbon cycling, greenhouse gas emissions, and how climate factors influence microplastic behavior in soils.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 56 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

Microplastic effects on carbon cycling in terrestrial soil ecosystems: Storage, formation, mineralization, and microbial mechanisms

Microplastics in soil contribute to organic carbon storage through degradation and leaching, but also disrupt carbon cycling by altering plant growth, litter decomposition, and microbial activity. The net effect on soil CO2 and CH4 emissions varies depending on how microplastics reshape microbial community structure and enzyme activity.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 8 citations
Review Tier 2

Recent Insights into Microplastic Pollution and Its Effects on Soil Carbon: A Five-Year Ecosystem Review

This review of 46 studies examines how microplastics influence carbon cycling in different soil ecosystems. The majority of studies reported increased CO2 and methane emissions in soils containing microplastics, though some found opposite or neutral effects depending on soil type and the characteristics of the microplastics, highlighting the need for further research to understand these complex interactions.

2025 Microplastics 7 citations
Article Tier 2

Soil carbon cycling mediated by microplastics: Formation, mineralization, and sequestration

This review examines how microplastic pollution affects soil organic carbon cycling, covering direct participation in carbon processes and indirect effects on soil physicochemical properties and microbial communities. The authors synthesize mechanisms by which microplastics influence organic carbon formation, mineralization, and sequestration in terrestrial ecosystems.

2024 Scientia Sinica Technologica 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Disentangling microplastics effects on soil structure, microbial activity and greenhouse gas emissions

Researchers studied how microplastics affect soil structure, microbial activity, and greenhouse gas emissions, finding complex interactions that depend on microplastic type and concentration. The presence of microplastics in soils can alter the biological processes that regulate carbon storage and nutrient cycling.

2022 4 citations
Article Tier 2

The impacts of microplastics on the cycling of carbon and nitrogen in terrestrial soil ecosystems: Progress and prospects

This review examines how microplastics in soil affect the cycling of carbon and nitrogen, two elements essential for plant growth and soil health. Microplastics alter soil microbial communities and enzyme activity in ways that change greenhouse gas emissions and nutrient availability, which could ultimately affect crop production and the food supply.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 67 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of microplastics on soil carbon pool and terrestrial plant performance

This review explores how microplastics in soil disrupt the carbon cycle by masquerading as natural soil carbon, changing how organic matter breaks down, and altering the communities of microbes that keep soil healthy. These soil changes could indirectly affect human health by reducing crop nutrition and contaminating food with plastic particles that move from soil into plants.

2024 Carbon Research 65 citations
Article Tier 2

Ecological Effects of Soil Microplastic Pollution

This review summarizes how microplastics contaminate soils, what effects they have on soil animals and microbes, and how they disrupt carbon and nitrogen cycling. As soils are the base of terrestrial food webs, microplastic-induced changes in soil ecosystems have cascading effects on food safety and human health.

2019 Science Insights 36 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of microplastics on soil properties: Current knowledge and future perspectives

This review examines how microplastics affect soil health, including changes to soil structure, chemistry, and the microbial communities that keep soil fertile. The effects vary depending on the type, shape, and amount of plastic present, but in many cases microplastics alter nutrient availability and can even influence greenhouse gas emissions from soil. These changes could threaten crop productivity and food safety, since microplastics are now found in agricultural soils worldwide.

2021 Journal of Hazardous Materials 837 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of microplastics on soil microorganisms and microbial functions in nutrients and carbon cycling – A review

This review examines how microplastics in soil alter the communities of bacteria and fungi that are essential for recycling nutrients like nitrogen, phosphorus, and carbon. Microplastics can increase certain beneficial bacteria but decrease others that are important for soil fertility, and they also carry toxic chemicals that further disrupt microbial life. The authors note that most studies are short-term lab experiments, and long-term field studies are needed to understand real-world impacts.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 174 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

Author comment: Microplastics alter soil carbon cycling: Effects on carbon storage, CO2 and CH4 emission and microbial community — R0/PR1

This systematic review summarizes research on how microplastics in soil affect carbon storage, greenhouse gas emissions, and microbial communities. The findings suggest that microplastic pollution can alter fundamental soil processes that regulate our climate, highlighting how plastic contamination has far-reaching environmental consequences beyond direct health effects.

2023
Article Tier 2

Microplastic-Derived Dissolved Organic Matter Regulates Soil Carbon Respiration via Microbial Ecophysiological Controls

Researchers investigated how dissolved organic matter released by microplastics affects the way soil microbes process carbon. They found that compounds leaching from both new and aged microplastics stimulated soil carbon release, with aged microplastics having a larger effect by altering microbial community structure. The findings suggest that microplastic pollution may influence soil carbon cycling and potentially affect how effectively soils store carbon.

2025 Environmental Science & Technology 15 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects and mechanism of microplastics on organic carbon and nitrogen cycling in agricultural soil: A review

This review summarizes how microplastic pollution in agricultural soils affects carbon and nitrogen cycling by altering soil properties, microbial communities, and enzymatic activity. Evidence indicates that microplastics can change organic matter degradation rates and nutrient cycling processes, with implications for soil health and agricultural productivity.

2023 Soil Use and Management 39 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of microplastics on soil carbon dioxide emissions and the microbial functional genes involved in organic carbon decomposition in agricultural soil

Researchers studied how polyethylene microplastics in agricultural soil affect carbon dioxide emissions and the microbial genes responsible for breaking down organic matter. They found that aged microplastics boosted soil carbon dioxide output and shifted the abundance of genes involved in decomposing starch, cellulose, and other carbon compounds. The findings suggest that microplastic accumulation in farmland may alter soil carbon cycling in ways that could influence greenhouse gas emissions.

2021 The Science of The Total Environment 210 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic Addition Alters the Microbial Community Structure and Stimulates Soil Carbon Dioxide Emissions in Vegetable-Growing Soil

A soil microcosm experiment found that low-density polyethylene microplastics significantly promoted CO₂ emissions from vegetable-growing soil, shifted the ratio of gram-positive to gram-negative bacteria, and altered microbial community structure in ways that could affect soil carbon cycling.

2020 Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 395 citations
Article Tier 2

Influence of biodegradable microplastics on soil carbon cycling: Insights from soil respiration, enzyme activity, carbon use efficiency and microbial community

Researchers investigated how biodegradable microplastics affect carbon cycling in soil by measuring respiration, enzyme activity, and microbial communities over 64 days. They found that certain biodegradable plastics, particularly polyhydroxyalkanoates, dramatically increased soil carbon emissions by up to 665% and significantly altered microbial community structure. The study suggests that even biodegradable plastics can substantially disrupt soil ecosystem processes when they break down into microplastic-sized particles.

2024 Environmental Research 34 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of microplastics on greenhouse gas emissions and the microbial community in fertilized soil

Two particle sizes of microplastics were added to fertilized soil and their effects on dissolved organic carbon, greenhouse gas fluxes, and microbial communities were measured, finding reduced global warming potential due to decreased methane emissions but changes in bacterial and fungal community composition. The study reveals complex interactions between microplastics and soil carbon cycling processes.

2019 Environmental Pollution 529 citations
Meta Analysis Tier 1

Microplastic pollution promotes soil respiration: A global‐scale meta‐analysis

This global meta-analysis pooled data from multiple studies and found that microplastic pollution in soil increased CO2 emissions by 25%. Microplastics boost certain soil microbes while reducing overall microbial diversity, changing how carbon cycles through the environment. While focused on soil health, this research shows how widespread microplastic pollution is reshaping ecosystems in ways that could ultimately affect climate and agriculture.

2024 Global Change Biology 68 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic-DerivedDissolved Organic Matter RegulatesSoil Carbon Respiration via Microbial Ecophysiological Controls

Researchers investigated how microplastic-derived dissolved organic matter influences soil carbon respiration, finding that carbon compounds leached from microplastics alter soil heterotrophic microbial ecophysiology and thereby affect carbon sequestration dynamics in contaminated soils.

2025 Figshare
Article Tier 2

Current Status and Future Challenges of Microplastics in the Agroecosystems

This review examines the current status and future challenges of microplastic contamination in agroecosystems, focusing on how microplastics alter soil biogeochemical processes, microbial community dynamics, and plant-soil health. Researchers found that microplastics create microbial hotspots, cause physical and chemical damage to soil organisms, and introduce carbon inputs that complicate ecosystem function assessments.

2022 Advances in human services and public health (AHSPH) book series