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20 resultsShowing papers similar to Microplastics Reshape the Fate of Aqueous Carbon by Inducing Dynamic Changes in Biodiversity and Chemodiversity
ClearPolystyrene microplastics facilitate formation of refractory dissolved organic matter and reduce CO2 emissions
Researchers found that polystyrene microplastics altered the composition and function of microbial communities in aquatic environments, promoting the formation of refractory dissolved organic matter that resists further breakdown. This shift in organic matter composition also led to reduced carbon dioxide emissions from the water system. The study suggests that microplastic pollution may have unexpected effects on aquatic carbon cycling by changing how organic matter is processed by microbes.
Investigating whether aquatic microbes are inhibited by dissolved organic carbon formed during the photo-dissolution of microplastics
Researchers investigated whether dissolved organic carbon produced when sunlight degrades floating microplastics inhibits aquatic microbial growth, finding that while much of the carbon can fuel microbial activity, some photochemically produced compounds may have inhibitory effects.
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.
Dual regulatory effects of microplastics and heat waves on river microbial carbon metabolism
Researchers found that microplastics inhibited the thermal adaptation of river microbial communities during simulated heat waves, disrupting carbon metabolism processes and suggesting that combined microplastic pollution and climate warming may alter riverine carbon cycling.
Distinct microbial metabolic activities of biofilms colonizing microplastics in three freshwater ecosystems
Biofilms growing on microplastics in three freshwater ecosystems showed distinct patterns of carbon metabolism compared to biofilms on glass, with PET-colonizing biofilms showing lower metabolic diversity. Environmental factors like nutrient levels and turbidity also shaped biofilm function, suggesting microplastics alter microbial-mediated carbon cycling in rivers and lakes.
Warming and microplastic pollution shape the carbon and nitrogen cycles of algae
Researchers investigated how ocean warming combined with microplastic pollution affects carbon and nitrogen cycling in marine diatoms and dinoflagellates, revealing that these combined stressors alter key biochemical processes in dominant phytoplankton species.
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.
Microplastic-derived dissolved organic matter and its biogeochemical behaviors in aquatic environments: A review
This review examines how microplastics release dissolved organic matter (MP-DOM) as they break down in water, and how these released chemicals affect water ecosystems. MP-DOM can interact with other pollutants and alter carbon cycling in natural waters, with the type and amount varying based on plastic composition and weathering conditions. Understanding what microplastics release into water as they degrade is important because these dissolved chemicals may have their own toxic effects on aquatic life and water quality.
Microplastics Increase the Risk of Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Water Pollution in a Freshwater Lake by Affecting Microbial Function in Biogenic Element Cycling: A Metagenomic Study
Researchers used metagenomic analysis to examine how microplastics affect microbial community function in a freshwater lake, finding that microplastic contamination disrupts biogenic element cycling processes and increases the risk of greenhouse gas emissions and water quality degradation.
Effects of microplastic particles on carbon source metabolism and bacterial community in freshwater lake sediments
A microcosm experiment tested how four common plastic types affect carbon metabolism and bacterial communities in freshwater lake sediments, finding that microplastics disrupted microbial carbon cycling and altered community composition.
Microplastics: New substrates for heterotrophic activity contribute to altering organic matter cycles in aquatic ecosystems
This study demonstrated that heterotrophic bacteria colonizing microplastic surfaces in aquatic ecosystems have distinct metabolic capabilities and can process organic matter at rates different from planktonic bacteria. The findings suggest that the plastisphere — the microbial community on plastic surfaces — may alter organic matter cycling in aquatic environments as microplastic abundance grows.
Microplastic-Derived Carbon Emissions: From Granular Carbon to Dissolved Organic Carbon and Carbon Dioxide under Ultraviolet Radiation
Researchers examined carbon emissions from microplastics during aging processes, finding that MPs release not only dissolved organic carbon but also granular carbon particles as they degrade, expanding understanding of the contribution of plastic pollution to oceanic carbon cycling and carbon budgets.
Impacts of climatic stressors on dissolved organic matter leaching from microplastics and their effects on biogeochemical processes: A review
This review examines how microplastics release dissolved organic matter as they break down in the environment, and how climate change may accelerate this process. The chemicals leached from degrading plastics can disrupt microbial communities and natural nutrient cycles, potentially increasing greenhouse gas production and altering the ecosystems that ultimately support our food and water supplies.
Dissolved organic carbon leaching from plastics stimulates microbial activity in the ocean
Researchers discovered that ocean plastics continuously leach dissolved organic carbon into seawater — an estimated 23,600 metric tons per year globally — fueling the growth of bacteria at the base of the marine food web. Because plastic pollution is projected to increase tenfold in the coming decade, this plastic-derived carbon input could significantly alter microbial communities and ocean chemistry in ways not yet fully understood.
Nanoplastic-mediated disruption of freshwater carbon cycling via modulating of plankton communities
Researchers exposed freshwater mesocosms to polystyrene nanoplastics (80–500 nm) at 1 mg/L and found significant disruption of zooplankton and bacterial community structure, which altered carbon cycling processes — suggesting nanoplastics can impair the ecosystem functions that regulate freshwater carbon flux.
Leaching of carbon, metals, and additives from microplastics to water
Researchers soaked a range of consumer plastic microplastics in water for 12 weeks and found that most released substantial dissolved organic carbon, metals including calcium, iron, and zinc, and dozens of chemical additives — with leaching rates highest in the first few weeks and varying by polymer type.
Microplastics AmplifyGreenhouse Gas Emissions fromFreshwater Sediments through Synergistic Interactions
Researchers found that increasing microplastic chemodiversity — measured by polymer type number and chemical composition — amplified greenhouse gas emissions from freshwater sediments by up to 4.69-fold in aquatic microcosms, with synergistic interactions prevailing when three or more polymer types were combined. This amplification effect was further intensified under warming conditions and was mediated by shifts in microbial community composition and dissolved organic matter.
“The Good, the Bad and the Double-Sword” Effects of Microplastics and Their Organic Additives in Marine Bacteria
Researchers exposed marine bacteria, including nitrogen-fixing strains, to microplastics and their organic additives, finding both stimulatory and inhibitory 'double-sword' effects on bacterial activities relevant to nutrient cycling and the microbial food web.
Effects of microplastics on nitrogen and phosphorus cycles and microbial communities in sediments
Researchers found that PVC, PLA, and polypropylene microplastics altered nitrogen and phosphorus cycling in freshwater sediments by shifting microbial community composition, with effects varying by polymer type and biodegradability.
Plastic leachates promote marine protozoan growth
Researchers studied how chemicals leaching from ocean plastics affect the growth of a marine protozoan and its associated bacteria. They found that plastic leachates dramatically increased dissolved organic carbon in seawater, boosting protozoan growth by up to ten times compared to controls. The study suggests that plastic pollution may be altering the base of marine food webs by providing an unnatural carbon source that shifts microbial community dynamics.