Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Distinct responses of Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1 exposed to different levels of polystyrene nanoplastics

Researchers examined the molecular mechanisms by which polystyrene nanoplastics affect Pseudomonas aeruginosa, finding dose-dependent responses in growth, metabolism, and virulence gene expression that reveal how nanoplastics interact with environmentally relevant bacteria.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 36 citations
Article Tier 2

Exposure to Nanoplastic Particles Enhances Acinetobacter Survival, Biofilm Formation, and Serum Resistance

Researchers found that nanopolystyrene particles enhance the survival, biofilm formation, and serum resistance of the bacterial pathogen Acinetobacter johnsonii, suggesting nanoplastics may increase the virulence and persistence of environmental pathogens.

2022 Nanomaterials 29 citations
Article Tier 2

Nanoplastics induce prophage activation and quorum sensing to enhance biofilm mechanical and chemical resilience

Researchers found that polystyrene nanoplastics at environmentally relevant concentrations promote the formation of more resilient bacterial biofilms by triggering viral activation and cell-to-cell communication within microbial communities. The nanoplastics caused oxidative stress that activated dormant viruses within bacteria, which in turn stimulated protective biofilm production with enhanced resistance to chlorine disinfection. The findings suggest that nanoplastic pollution could make harmful bacterial communities in water systems harder to eliminate through standard treatment methods.

2025 Water Research 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Polystyrene nanoplastics foster Escherichia coli O157:H7 growth and antibiotic resistance with a stimulating effect on metabolism

Researchers found that polystyrene nanoplastics promoted the growth and antibiotic resistance of pathogenic E. coli O157:H7 by stimulating bacterial metabolism, raising concerns about increased contamination risks in aquatic environments.

2023 Environmental Science Nano 10 citations
Article Tier 2

[Influence of Polystyrene Microplastics on the Formation and Structural Change of Pseudomonas aeruginosa Biofilm].

Laboratory experiments exposing Pseudomonas aeruginosa — a medically significant opportunistic pathogen — to polystyrene microplastics found that MPs inhibited biofilm formation, with smaller particles (0.1 µm) causing stronger inhibition by disrupting the quorum sensing communication system that bacteria use to coordinate behavior. Microplastics caused physical damage to bacterial cells and reduced the expression of virulence-related genes. These findings suggest that environmental microplastic contamination could alter the behavior of pathogenic bacteria in ways that are difficult to predict.

2023 PubMed 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Polystyrene nanoplastics and pathogen plasticity: Toxic threat or tolerated stressor in Salmonella enterica?

Researchers examined how polystyrene nanoplastics affect Salmonella enterica, a major foodborne pathogen, across a range of concentrations. They found that nanoplastics induced oxidative stress, membrane damage, and increased biofilm formation, while also triggering early activation of virulence and stress-response genes. The study suggests that nanoplastic pollution in the environment could alter bacterial survival strategies and potentially influence food safety risks.

2026 Journal of Hazardous Materials
Article Tier 2

A neglected risk of nanoplastics as revealed by the promoted transformation of plasmid‐borne ampicillin resistance gene by Escherichia coli

Researchers discovered that polystyrene nanoplastics can significantly promote the horizontal transfer of antibiotic resistance genes in bacteria, increasing transformation efficiency by 2.8 to 5.4 fold. The study found that nanoplastics induced oxidative stress, activated bacterial SOS responses, and increased cell membrane permeability, facilitating the uptake of resistance-carrying DNA, while larger microplastics had no such effect.

2022 Environmental Microbiology 62 citations
Article Tier 2

Combined effects of nanosized polystyrene and erythromycin on bacterial growth and resistance mutations in Escherichia coli

Researchers found that polystyrene nanoplastics — particularly amino-modified and 30 nm particles — increased antibiotic resistance mutations in Escherichia coli by inducing oxidative DNA damage and the bacterial SOS stress response, and that positively charged particles synergistically enhanced erythromycin toxicity by acting as antibiotic carriers.

2021 Journal of Hazardous Materials 78 citations
Article Tier 2

Nanoplastics-mediated physiologic and genomic responses in pathogenic Escherichia coli O157:H7

This study found that nanoplastics can change the behavior of a dangerous strain of E. coli bacteria, boosting the activity of toxin genes and encouraging the bacteria to form protective biofilms. This raises concern that plastic pollution in the environment could make disease-causing bacteria harder to fight, potentially increasing infection risks for people.

2025 Journal of Nanobiotechnology 11 citations
Article Tier 2

Growth and membrane stress responses in E. coli and Acinetobacter sp. upon exposure to functionalized polystyrene microplastics

Researchers exposed E. coli and Acinetobacter bacteria to polystyrene microplastics with different surface chemistries, finding that surface functionalization strongly influenced MP toxicity, with some functionalized particles disrupting bacterial membrane integrity and biofilm formation more than non-functionalized particles.

2025 Environmental Analysis Health and Toxicology
Article Tier 2

Impact of polystyrene nanoplastics on primary sludge fermentation under acidic and alkaline conditions: Significance of antibiotic resistance genes

Researchers studied how polystyrene nanoplastics affect the fermentation of sewage sludge at different pH levels. They found that low doses stimulated hydrogen gas production while higher concentrations suppressed it, and that nanoplastic exposure promoted the spread of antibiotic resistance genes in the microbial community. The findings raise concerns about nanoplastics in wastewater systems potentially contributing to the broader problem of antibiotic resistance.

2024 Chemosphere 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of unmodified and amine-functionalized polystyrene nanoplastics on nitrogen removal by Pseudomonas stutzeri: strain characteristics, extracellular polymers, and transcriptomics

Researchers investigated how two types of polystyrene nanoplastics — plain and amine-modified — affect the ability of bacteria to remove nitrogen from water, a process important for wastewater treatment. The amine-coated nanoplastics were found to be more disruptive than unmodified ones, altering the bacteria's cell surface, extracellular proteins, and gene expression. This matters because nanoplastics entering wastewater systems could undermine the biological processes that keep treated water safe to release into the environment.

2025 Environmental Science Nano 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Dose-Dependent Responses of Escherichia coli and Acinetobacter sp. to Micron-Sized Polystyrene Microplastics

Researchers exposed E. coli and Acinetobacter sp. to 1,040 nm polystyrene microplastics across a range of concentrations and assessed growth, oxidative stress, membrane integrity, and biofilm formation. Both species showed concentration-dependent decreases in growth and cell viability, increased oxidative stress markers, impaired membrane integrity, and enhanced biofilm formation, demonstrating microplastic toxicity to environmental and human-associated bacteria.

2025 Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology 2 citations
Article Tier 2

How nanoscale plastics facilitate the evolution of antibiotic resistance?

Researchers explored how nanoscale plastic particles promote the evolution of antibiotic resistance in bacteria. They found that exposure to nanoplastics increased oxidative stress in bacteria, which in turn accelerated mutations and horizontal gene transfer that confer resistance to antibiotics. The study suggests that nanoplastic pollution could be an overlooked factor contributing to the global antibiotic resistance crisis.

2024 Journal of Hazardous Materials 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Nano- and Microplastics Aided by Extracellular Polymeric Substances Facilitate the Conjugative Transfer of Antibiotic Resistance Genes in Bacteria

Researchers found that nanoplastics and small microplastics significantly enhance the transfer of antibiotic resistance genes between bacteria by damaging cell membranes and stimulating extracellular polymeric substance production, raising concerns about plastic pollution driving antimicrobial resistance.

2022 ACS ES&T Water 36 citations
Article Tier 2

Exposure to polystyrene nanoparticles at predicted environmental concentrations enhances toxic effects of Acinetobacter johnsonii AC15 infection on Caenorhabditis elegans

Researchers found that exposure to polystyrene nanoparticles at low, environmentally realistic concentrations made a bacterial infection significantly more harmful to the roundworm C. elegans. The nanoparticles increased bacterial accumulation in the worms' bodies and weakened their innate immune responses. The study suggests that nanoplastic pollution in the environment could amplify the toxicity of common microbial pathogens.

2023 Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety 24 citations
Article Tier 2

Pseudomonas Stutzeri may alter the environmental fate of polystyrene nanoplastics by trapping them with increasing extracellular polymers

Researchers found that the denitrifying bacterium Pseudomonas stutzeri physically traps polystyrene nanoplastics within secreted extracellular polymers, which impairs bacterial growth and nitrogen removal gene expression while altering the particles' environmental fate and dispersal.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Impact of aging of primary and secondary polystyrene nanoplastics on the transmission of antibiotic resistance genes in anaerobic digestion

Researchers studied how aged and non-aged nanoplastics from both manufactured and environmentally degraded polystyrene affect the spread of antibiotic resistance genes during sewage sludge treatment. They found that higher concentrations of nanoplastics inhibited the treatment process and increased the abundance of antibiotic resistance genes, with environmentally degraded particles having a stronger effect due to their altered surface properties. The study raises concerns that nanoplastic pollution in sewage systems may be contributing to the spread of antibiotic resistance.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Interactions between bacteria and nano (micro)-sized polystyrene particles by bacterial responses and microscopy

Researchers studied how bacteria interact with polystyrene particles ranging from 60 to 2,260 nanometers and found that the smallest particles entered bacterial cells while larger ones accumulated on surfaces. The 1,040-nanometer particles, similar in size to the bacteria themselves, inhibited growth most strongly, and bacteria responded by forming biofilm complexes around the microplastics.

2022 Chemosphere 53 citations
Article Tier 2

In vitro modeling for the aging of nanoplastics: physicochemical characteristics and effect on the biofilm formation of Staphylococcus aureus

Researchers found that nanoplastics change as they age under environmental conditions, altering surface properties and increasing bacterial attachment. Aged nanoplastics promoted Staphylococcus aureus biofilm formation more than fresh particles, with potential implications for human health.

2021
Article Tier 2

Nano-sized polystyrene and magnetite collectively promote biofilm stability and resistance due to enhanced oxidative stress response

Researchers found that polystyrene nanoplastics and magnetite nanoparticles — both common in drinking water systems — together stimulate Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilm formation more than either particle alone, increasing biofilm biomass by up to 40%, structural rigidity ninefold, and antibiotic resistance, posing an underappreciated microbial safety threat in water distribution infrastructure.

2024 Journal of Hazardous Materials 13 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of polystyrene microplastics on the metabolic level of Pseudomonas aeruginosa

This study examined how polystyrene microplastics affect the metabolism of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a common water bacterium that can cause serious infections in humans. The microplastics significantly disrupted the bacteria's metabolism, reducing its ability to process lipids, amino acids, and energy-producing molecules. These metabolic changes could alter how this pathogen behaves in the environment and potentially affect its ability to cause disease.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 23 citations
Article Tier 2

Polystyrene\nNanoplastics Inhibit the Transformation\nof Tetrabromobisphenol A by the Bacterium Rhodococcus jostii

This study found that polystyrene nanoplastics interfere with a bacterium's ability to break down tetrabromobisphenol A, a common flame retardant and environmental contaminant. Nanoplastics adsorbed the chemical onto their surface, reducing its bioavailability, while also causing oxidative stress in the bacteria and disrupting the enzymes needed for biodegradation.

2021 Figshare
Article Tier 2

Polystyrene\nNanoplastics Inhibit the Transformation\nof Tetrabromobisphenol A by the Bacterium Rhodococcus jostii

This study found that polystyrene nanoplastics interfere with a bacterium's ability to break down tetrabromobisphenol A, a common flame retardant and environmental contaminant. Nanoplastics adsorbed the chemical onto their surface, reducing its bioavailability, while also causing oxidative stress in the bacteria and disrupting the enzymes needed for biodegradation.

2021 Figshare