Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Distinct community structure and microbial functions of biofilms colonizing microplastics

Biofilm communities were established on polyethylene, polypropylene, cobblestone, and wood substrates over 21 days under controlled conditions and compared by 16S rRNA sequencing, finding that plastic substrates harbored distinct microbial communities and functional profiles compared to natural materials. The study demonstrates that microplastics in freshwater environments provide a selective niche that enriches for distinct microbial taxa and metabolic functions.

2018 The Science of The Total Environment 583 citations
Article Tier 2

Unique Bacterial Community of the Biofilm on Microplastics in Coastal Water

Researchers compared bacterial communities forming biofilms on steel, silica, and PVC microplastic surfaces in coastal seawater and found that biofilm composition differed by material type. This shows that the type of plastic surface influences which microbial communities colonize it, with implications for how microplastics may spread specific bacteria.

2020 Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 17 citations
Article Tier 2

Wastewater treatment alters microbial colonization of microplastics

Analysis of microplastics and their biofilms across raw sewage, effluent, and sludge at two wastewater treatment plants found that >99% of influent MPs were retained in sludge, and that wastewater treatment substantially altered biofilm microbial composition, enriching bioflocculation-associated taxa.

2021 PLoS ONE 133 citations
Article Tier 2

Effect of different size microplastic particles on the construction of algal-bacterial biofilms and microbial communities

Researchers tested how microplastic particles of different sizes affect algal-bacterial biofilms used for sewage treatment. Smaller nanoplastics caused more damage to the biofilm community, reducing algal growth and shifting microbial diversity, while larger microplastics had milder effects. This matters because algal-bacterial systems are a green technology for water treatment, and microplastic contamination could undermine their effectiveness.

2023 Journal of Environmental Management 33 citations
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

Evaluation of prokaryotic and eukaryotic microbial communities on microplastic‐associated biofilms in marine and freshwater environments

Researchers analyzed microbial biofilm communities on microplastic surfaces in both marine and freshwater environments, finding that plastic-associated biofilms harbor distinct prokaryotic and eukaryotic communities with potential roles in plastic biodegradation.

2024 Engineering in Life Sciences 6 citations
Article Tier 2

Surface-programmed microbiome assembly in phycosphere to microplastics contamination

Researchers studied how algal-bacterial communities assemble on microplastic surfaces and their potential role in degrading these pollutants. They found that microplastics in wastewater environments develop distinct microbial communities on their surfaces, with certain bacteria showing enhanced plastic-degrading enzyme activity when associated with algae. The study suggests that engineered algal-bacterial systems could offer a sustainable biological approach to microplastic remediation.

2024 Water Research 14 citations
Article Tier 2

Microalgae colonization of different microplastic polymers in experimental mesocosms across an environmental gradient

Microalgal colonization of five different microplastic polymer types was monitored in freshwater mesocosms across an environmental gradient, finding that polymer type, surface properties, and environmental conditions all influenced the biomass and community composition of epiplastic microalgal biofilms.

2021 Global Change Biology 59 citations
Article Tier 2

Genomic and proteomic profiles of biofilms on microplastics are decoupled from artificial surface properties

Genomic and proteomic analysis of biofilms on marine microplastics showed that community composition and functional profiles were primarily shaped by environmental conditions rather than the specific surface properties of the plastic substrate.

2021 Environmental Microbiology 75 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

Characterization of Microplastic-Associated Biofilm Development along a Freshwater-Estuarine Gradient

Researchers characterized biofilm bacterial communities on three types of microplastics incubated along a freshwater-estuarine gradient, finding that salinity and plastic type influenced microbial community composition and succession over a 31-day period.

2021 Environmental Science & Technology 119 citations
Article Tier 2

Analysis of 16S rRNA amplicon data illuminates the major role of environment in determining the marine plastisphere microbial communities

Researchers analysed 16S rRNA amplicon data from marine plastisphere communities, finding that environmental factors play the dominant role in determining the microbial communities that colonise microplastic surfaces in marine ecosystems.

2024
Article Tier 2

Microbial Community in a Wastewater System

Researchers characterized microbial community composition in a wastewater treatment system, examining how treatment stage and operational conditions shape bacterial diversity and functional potential relevant to pollutant degradation.

2024
Article Tier 2

Structural Diversity in Early-Stage Biofilm Formation on Microplastics Depends on Environmental Medium and Polymer Properties

This study examined the early stages of bacterial biofilm formation on different types of plastic surfaces in different environmental media, finding that both the growth medium and the polymer type influenced which microbial communities colonized the plastic. These plastic-associated biofilms (the plastisphere) can make microplastics more appealing to filter-feeding organisms that mistake them for food.

2020 Water 55 citations
Article Tier 2

Diversity and succession of microbial communities on typical microplastics in Xincun Bay, a long-term mariculture tropical lagoon

Researchers tracked microbial community succession on polyethylene, polystyrene, and polypropylene microplastics over 60 days in a tropical mariculture lagoon, finding that plastisphere bacterial diversity exceeded that of surrounding seawater and that community structure shifted significantly over time.

2022 Oceanological and Hydrobiological Studies 7 citations
Article Tier 2

Combined environmental pressure induces unique assembly patterns of micro-plastisphere biofilm microbial communities in constructed wetlands

Researchers studied how biofilm communities form on microplastic surfaces within constructed wetlands used for wastewater treatment. They found that environmental stressors like antibiotics and organic matter created unique microbial communities on microplastics that differed from those on natural surfaces. The study suggests that constructed wetlands, while effective at trapping microplastics, may also foster distinct microbial ecosystems on plastic surfaces that warrant further investigation.

2024 Water Research 26 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

Bacterial and fungal assemblages and functions associated with biofilms differ between diverse types of plastic debris in a freshwater system

Researchers characterised bacterial and fungal assemblages on three types of plastic debris in a freshwater urban river system, finding that microbial communities on plastics differ from those in surrounding water. High-throughput sequencing revealed that alpha diversity of bacterial communities was higher on polyethylene microplastics than on other plastic types, with intraspecies interactions between bacteria and fungi differing across diverse plastic substrates.

2020 Environmental Research 90 citations
Article Tier 2

Marine microplastic-associated biofilms – a review

This review synthesizes research on biofilm communities forming on marine microplastics, covering their composition, formation dynamics, and potential consequences for both plastic fate and ocean microbiology. The authors highlight that plastic-associated biofilms can include pathogens and toxin producers, and that the plastisphere community differs meaningfully from the surrounding seawater microbiome.

2015 Environmental Chemistry 463 citations
Article Tier 2

Identification of microplastic-associated microbial communities from various stages of wastewater treatment and recipient surface waters using MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry

Researchers deployed six polymer types at different stages of wastewater treatment across three Hungarian plants and used MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry to identify the bacteria colonizing microplastic surfaces, finding distinct microbial communities that may act as vectors for antibiotic resistance.

2025 Journal of Central European Green Innovation
Article Tier 2

The composition of bacterial communities associated with plastic biofilms differs between different polymers and stages of biofilm succession

Researchers tracked bacterial community development on five different plastic types submerged in coastal waters over two months. They found that bacterial community composition varied by both plastic type and stage of colonization, with distinct early and late succession patterns. The study provides evidence that different plastics may host different microbial communities, which has implications for understanding how plastic pollution influences marine microbial ecology.

2019 PLoS ONE 296 citations
Article Tier 2

Plastics select for distinct early colonizing microbial populations with reproducible traits across environmental gradients

Incubation of virgin microplastics across oceanic transects showed early colonization was reproducibly dominated by Alteromonadaceae with enriched genes for adhesion, biofilm formation, and hydrocarbon degradation, while mature plastic biofilms shifted to Rhodobacteraceae with genes for carbohydrate hydrolysis and photosynthesis.

2023 Environmental Microbiology 26 citations
Article Tier 2

Textile waste and microplastic induce activity and development of unique hydrocarbon-degrading marine bacterial communities

Marine microbial communities respond differently to virgin plastic microbeads, textile fibers, and a surfactant, each inducing distinct patterns of metabolic activity. The findings show that microplastics support unique microbial communities with potential roles in both pollution cycling and disease transmission.

2020 6 citations
Article Tier 2

Time-series incubations in a coastal environment illuminates the importance of early colonizers and the complexity of bacterial biofilm dynamics on marine plastics

Researchers used time-series incubations in a coastal marine environment to track plastisphere biofilm formation on microplastics, finding that early bacterial colonizers play a disproportionate role in shaping community dynamics and that biofilm composition is highly complex, varying with polymer type, incubation time, and surrounding environment.

2022 Environmental Pollution 28 citations