Papers

61,005 results
|
Article Tier 2

[Distribution Characteristics of Microplastic Surface Bacterial Communities Under Flooded and Non-flooded Conditions in Nanjishan Wetland of Poyang Lake].

A 16S sequencing study of bacterial communities in the Poyang Lake wetland found that microbial diversity on microplastic surfaces was lower than in surrounding sediment and water, with the microplastic biofilm community shifting between sediment-like (non-flooded) and water-like (flooded) profiles depending on water level. The plastisphere communities were dominated by distinct bacterial genera including elevated Proteobacteria, suggesting that microplastics select for specific microbial assemblages in natural wetland ecosystems.

2023 PubMed
Article Tier 2

Bacterial community structure of water, sediment and microplastics in Poyang Lake wetland.

This study compared the bacterial communities living on four types of microplastics (film, foam, fiber, and fragment) in Poyang Lake wetland in China against the bacterial communities in the surrounding water and sediment. The microplastic surfaces hosted distinct microbial communities that differed from both the water and sediment, with foam microplastics supporting the least diverse communities. This "plastisphere" research is important because the unique bacteria colonizing plastic surfaces could spread pathogens or alter nutrient cycles in freshwater wetland ecosystems.

2023 PubMed
Article Tier 2

Microplastic-associated bacterial assemblages in the intertidal zone of the Yangtze Estuary

Researchers used high-throughput DNA sequencing to profile bacterial communities colonizing microplastics in the intertidal zone of China's Yangtze Estuary, finding that plastisphere community composition reflected the particles' sedimentary versus aquatic origins and included keystone taxa adapted to surface-colonization as well as potential pathogens hitchhiking on plastic surfaces.

2017 The Science of The Total Environment 356 citations
Article Tier 2

Uniqueness and Dependence of Bacterial Communities on Microplastics: Comparison with Water, Sediment, and Soil

Researchers compared bacterial communities on microplastics with those in water, sediment, and soil in the Three Gorges Reservoir area, finding that microplastic-associated communities are unique in composition and ecological function compared to surrounding environments.

2021 Microbial Ecology 38 citations
Article Tier 2

Characteristics of microplastic pollution and analysis of colonized-microbiota in a freshwater aquaculture system.

Researchers found microplastics averaging 288.53 items per liter in freshwater aquaculture ponds in China, dominated by transparent fibers and cellulose particles, and discovered that bacterial communities on microplastic surfaces had significantly higher species richness and diversity than those in surrounding water. The plastisphere communities were enriched with Proteobacteria, including cellulose-degrading and potentially pathogenic species.

2022 Environmental Pollution 38 citations
Article Tier 2

Microbial Communities on Plastic Polymers in the Mediterranean Sea

Researchers collected floating microplastics from a bay in the Mediterranean and analyzed their bacterial biofilm communities using 16S rRNA sequencing, finding that microbial communities on plastics were distinct from surrounding seawater and differed between polymer types.

2021 Frontiers in Microbiology 125 citations
Article Tier 2

Comparative analysis of microplastic and microbial communities in varied aquatic environments: Disparities in occurrence, interconnections, and ecological implications

Comparative surveys of microplastics and associated microbial communities across river, reservoir, and bay environments in the Dongjiang watershed found that MP abundance and microbial community composition differed significantly by water type, with MP surfaces hosting distinct microbial assemblages.

2025 Journal of Hazardous Materials 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Exploring the Composition and Functions of Plastic Microbiome Using Whole-Genome Sequencing

Whole-genome sequencing of microbial biofilms on four types of marine microplastics revealed that plastic surfaces harbor distinct microbial communities with unique functional potential, including enrichment of Vibrio species with pathogenic and plastic-degrading capabilities.

2021 Environmental Science & Technology 126 citations
Article Tier 2

Are bacterial communities associated with microplastics influenced by marine habitats?

A three-month field exposure experiment on a Chinese island compared bacterial communities on polyethylene and PET microplastics in three marine habitats (intertidal, supralittoral, seawater), finding that habitat significantly shaped community structure but polymer type had a weaker influence.

2020 The Science of The Total Environment 85 citations
Article Tier 2

Substrate-driven microbial diversity and functional potential of plastisphere biofilms in a dynamic coastal ecosystem of northeastern Taiwan

Researchers used full-length 16S rRNA sequencing to compare microbial communities on floating microplastics, natural wood debris, and surface seawater from ten coastal sites in Taiwan, finding that microplastics harbor unique and highly diverse microbial assemblages distinct from those on natural surfaces.

2025 Environmental Pollution
Article Tier 2

Effects of microplastics on bacterial communities in lake wetland sediments: a comparison between drought and flooded conditions

Researchers established a sediment microcosm system for Poyang Lake wetland and examined the effects of polyethylene and polypropylene microplastics on bacterial community structure, functional genes, and ecological processes over 180 days under both simulated drought and flooded conditions.

2025 Journal of Environmental Management
Article Tier 2

In Situ Investigation of Plastic-Associated Bacterial Communities in a Freshwater Lake of Hungary

Researchers investigated plastic-associated bacterial communities on microplastic surfaces in a Hungarian freshwater lake, finding that the plastisphere harbored distinct microbial communities compared to surrounding water, including potential pathogens and plastic-degrading bacteria.

2021 Water Air & Soil Pollution 30 citations
Article Tier 2

Marine microplastic-associated bacterial community succession in response to geography, exposure time, and plastic type in China's coastal seawaters

Researchers used high-throughput gene sequencing to track how microbial communities on polypropylene and polyvinyl chloride microplastics changed over a full year in Chinese coastal waters. They found that the composition of plastic-associated bacterial communities varied significantly across geographic locations and over time, with Alphaproteobacteria being consistently dominant. The study reveals that the plastisphere is a dynamic ecosystem shaped by both environmental conditions and the duration of exposure.

2019 Marine Pollution Bulletin 155 citations
Article Tier 2

Plastisphere in Lakes: Biodiversity, Structure and Possible Implications for Freshwater Ecosystems

Researchers characterized prokaryotic and eukaryotic plastisphere communities on microplastics from four lakes in Italy using 16S and 18S rRNA high-throughput sequencing and fluorescence in situ hybridization with confocal laser scanning microscopy. Despite geographic variation among sites, plastisphere communities shared a core microbiome of known biofilm formers that was compositionally distinct from surrounding planktonic communities.

2022 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Is there a significant difference in microbiota between water and microplastic surfaces in winter? The possibility of spreading offshore into the ocean

Researchers sampled microplastics from the Yangtze River Estuary surface water in winter and analyzed associated bacterial communities, finding that sampling location was a dominant driver of microbial composition and that potential pathogenic genera including Pseudomonas showed significant site-specific variation, raising concerns about offshore pathogen dispersal via plastic-associated biofilms.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 13 citations
Article Tier 2

Exploring changes in microplastic-associated bacterial communities with time, location, and polymer type in Liusha Bay, China

Researchers tracked how bacterial communities colonizing different types of microplastics changed over time in an aquaculture bay in China. They found that both exposure duration and plastic type significantly influenced which bacteria grew on the surfaces, with hydrocarbon-degrading species becoming notably abundant. Concerning from a health perspective, the pathogenic bacterium Vibrio was detected on all microplastic samples, suggesting that floating plastics may serve as rafts for disease-causing organisms.

2024 Marine Environmental Research 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Vertical distribution characteristics of microplastics and bacterial communities in the sediment columns of Jianhu lake in China

Researchers examined microplastic abundance, morphology, and polymer types alongside bacterial community composition in sediment columns (0-60 cm depth) of Jianhu Lake, China, finding microplastic concentrations of 624-3050 particles/kg with rayon, PET, and SBS as dominant polymers, and revealing correlations between microplastic characteristics and bacterial community structure via co-occurrence network analysis.

2024 Environmental Geochemistry and Health
Article Tier 2

Microplastic biofilm in fresh- and wastewater as a function of microparticle type and size class

Researchers compared the biofilm communities that form on microplastics of different types and sizes in both freshwater and wastewater, finding that biofilm composition was influenced by particle type, size, and water source. These findings advance understanding of the plastisphere — the microbial community unique to plastic surfaces — and its potential role in spreading microorganism-associated risks.

2019 Environmental Science Water Research & Technology 184 citations
Article Tier 2

Complex microplastics significantly influence the assembly process of lake bacterial communities

Researchers examined how complex environmental microplastics -- varying in abundance, shape, size, color, and polymer type -- influence bacterial community assembly in water and sediments of Taihu Lake, China. Microplastics were associated with shifts in bacterial community composition and assembly processes, with distinct communities forming on plastic surfaces compared to surrounding lake water and sediments.

2024 Journal of Hazardous Materials 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic-associated biofilms in lentic Italian ecosystems

Researchers used high-throughput DNA sequencing and fluorescence microscopy to characterize biofilm communities growing on microplastics collected from Italian lake ecosystems. They found that the microbial communities on plastic surfaces differed significantly from those in surrounding water, forming distinct "plastisphere" assemblages. The study reveals that microplastics in freshwater lakes serve as novel habitats for specialized microbial communities, some of which may include potentially harmful species.

2020 Water Research 177 citations
Article Tier 2

Potential risk of microplastics in plateau karst lakes: Insights from metagenomic analysis

Researchers surveyed microplastic pollution in remote alpine lakes on the edge of the Tibetan Plateau, finding concentrations of 20 to 59 particles per liter in water and up to 997 particles per kilogram in sediments. Using metagenomic analysis, they discovered that microplastic surfaces harbored distinct microbial communities carrying antibiotic resistance and virulence genes. The study suggests that even pristine high-altitude ecosystems are affected by microplastic contamination with potential ecological risks.

2025 Environmental Research 7 citations
Article Tier 2

Characterizing Microplastic Pollution and Microbial Community Status in Rice Paddy Soils Across Varied Environmental Settings in Songjiang, Shanghai: An Analysis of Morpho-Chemical Characteristics

Researchers characterized microplastic pollution and associated microbial communities in rice paddy soils, finding widespread microplastic contamination that correlated with shifts in soil bacterial diversity. Plastic-associated microbial communities differed from bulk soil communities, suggesting microplastics create distinct microbial niches in agricultural environments.

2024 International Journal of Innovative Science and Research Technology (IJISRT) 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Diversity and structure of microbial biofilms on microplastics in riverine waters of the Pearl River Delta, China

Microbial biofilm communities on microplastics in Pearl River Delta waterways showed distinct composition and diversity compared to surrounding water and natural surfaces, with river environmental conditions more influential than plastic polymer type in shaping biofilm structure.

2021 Chemosphere 62 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics pollution alters bacterial community in hyporheic sediments: A case study from the Beiluo River Basin

Researchers surveyed microplastics in hyporheic zone sediments (the biologically active layer beneath riverbeds) of China's Beiluo River and found that PET fragments smaller than 30 µm dominated, with polymer type and particle size driving distinct shifts in bacterial community composition and suppressing overall microbial diversity.

2026 Journal of Hazardous Materials