Papers

20 results
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Article Tier 2

Bacterial Community Structure and Its Influencing Factors in Surface Sediments of the Nyang River in the Dry Season, China

Researchers analyzed bacterial community diversity in surface sediments of the Nyang River in Tibet using high-throughput sequencing, finding that climate warming and human activities along this plateau river have measurably shaped microbial composition and structure.

2023 Applied Ecology and Environmental Research 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Evaluation of the Influence of Habitat Heterogeneity and Human Activities on the Distribution of Microbial Diversity in a High Elevation Drop River

This is a freshwater microbiology study characterizing bacterial diversity in the Huotong River across different land-use zones in China; it is not a microplastics research paper.

2023 Diversity 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Spatial distribution and source apportionment of nitrogen in typical plain river networks and bacterial community response

This study characterized nitrogen types and bacterial community responses across typical plain river networks with different pollution sources (domestic, agricultural, aquaculture), finding that diverse nitrogen speciation in domestically polluted areas drove greater nitrogen cycling gene abundance and more complex bacterial ecological networks.

2025 Frontiers in Microbiology 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Spatial and Temporal Distribution of Bacterioplankton Molecular Ecological Networks in the Yuan River under Different Human Activity Intensity

Bacterioplankton co-occurrence networks in the Yuan River varied spatially and temporally with human activity intensity, with sites under heavy anthropogenic pressure showing simpler, less connected networks and reduced microbial diversity, suggesting that human disturbances destabilize aquatic microbial community interactions.

2021 Microorganisms 12 citations
Article Tier 2

Identifying Microbial Distribution Drivers of Archaeal Community in Sediments from a Black-Odorous Urban River—A Case Study of the Zhang River Basin

This study investigated how urbanization, eutrophication, and heavy metal pollution shape archaeal (ancient microbial) community composition in sediments of blackened, odorous urban rivers. Understanding microbial responses to these stressors helps track the health of aquatic ecosystems heavily impacted by pollution, including microplastics.

2021 Water 8 citations
Article Tier 2

Impact of microplastics on microbial community structure in the Qiantang river: A potential source of N2O emissions

Researchers examined how microplastics affect microbial community structure in the Qiantang River, finding that plastic contamination selects for specific bacterial taxa and alters the functional composition of river microbial communities.

2024 Environmental Pollution 8 citations
Article Tier 2

Structural and Functional Characteristics of Soil Microbial Communities in Forest–Wetland Ecotones: A Case Study of the Lesser Khingan Mountains

Researchers examined soil microbial communities across a forest-to-wetland gradient in China's Lesser Khingan Mountains, comparing mixed forest, conifer forest, wetland edge, and natural wetland. Natural wetland soils harbored the most distinct bacterial communities, driven primarily by high organic matter, nitrogen, and phosphorus content.

2025 Life 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Evaluation of nitrate pollution sources in surface water across the typical rural-urban interface: a case study of Wen-Rui Tang River, China

Researchers identified the main sources of nitrate pollution in a rural-urban Chinese river, finding that human sewage and agricultural runoff were the primary contributors. While focused on nitrogen pollution, the study illustrates how mixed land use creates complex water quality challenges in rivers that also carry microplastics.

2021 Research Square (Research Square) 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Water Bacterial and Fungal Community Compositions Associated with Urban Lakes, Xi’an, China

Bacterial and fungal communities in urban lakes in Xi'an, China were characterized, revealing diverse microbial assemblages influenced by nutrient levels and land use in the surrounding watershed. Understanding the microbial ecology of urban lakes provides context for how microplastic-associated microbial communities might interact with existing water quality challenges.

2018 International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 54 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of Microplastics on Microbial Community in Zhanjiang Mangrove Sediments

Researchers found that microplastics in mangrove sediments from Zhanjiang, China, altered the diversity and composition of microbial communities and may affect nitrogen cycling processes such as nitrification.

2022 Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 31 citations
Article Tier 2

From the Mountain to the Valley: Drivers of Groundwater Prokaryotic Communities along an Alpine River Corridor

Researchers sampled river water and groundwater from 59 sites along a 300 km transect of the Mur River valley in Austria and Slovenia, finding that dispersal limitation drives microbial community assembly at high altitudes while homogeneous selection dominates in lowland aquifers, with land use being a key determinant of groundwater microbiome composition throughout.

2023 Microorganisms 8 citations
Article Tier 2

The Community Structure of eDNA in the Los Angeles River Reveals an Altered Nitrogen Cycle at Impervious Sites

Researchers used environmental DNA metabarcoding with six molecular markers to characterize bacterial, plant, fungal, fish, and invertebrate communities at concrete-lined and soft-bottom sites along the Los Angeles River, applying PCA and differential abundance analysis to reveal community structure. The study found that concrete-impervious sites were associated with altered nitrogen cycling driven by differential abundance of Proteobacteria.

2023 Diversity 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Spatial distribution and vertical characteristics of microplastics in the urban river: The case of Qinhuai River in Nanjing, China

Researchers investigated the spatial distribution and vertical characteristics of microplastics in the Qinhuai River in Nanjing, China. The study found an average concentration of about 668 microplastic items per liter, with abundance patterns varying between surface and deep water at different points along the river, and identified correlations between microplastic presence and shifts in microbial community structure.

2024 Marine Pollution Bulletin 16 citations
Article Tier 2

Urbanization promotes specific bacteria in freshwater microbiomes including potential pathogens

Researchers used full-length 16S rRNA sequencing to compare freshwater microbial communities across urban and rural lakes in Germany, finding that urbanization consistently promoted specific bacterial genera including potential pathogens such as Escherichia/Shigella and Rickettsia, driven by warming, eutrophication, and wastewater inputs.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 45 citations
Article Tier 2

Ecological Rolesand Shared Microbes Differentiatethe Plastisphere from Natural Particle-Associated Microbiomes in UrbanRivers

Researchers compared the microbiomes on microplastics (the 'plastisphere') versus natural particles in ten urban rivers using metagenomics, finding similar overall taxonomic and functional compositions between the two. However, the plastisphere harbored distinct specialist taxa with enhanced capacity for complex carbohydrate metabolism and unique ecological strategies.

2025 Figshare
Article Tier 2

Novel bacterial lineages assembled from wastewater-impacted river metagenomes unveil ecosystem functions and risk of antibiotic resistance spread in the community

Researchers assembled novel bacterial lineages from metagenomes of wastewater-impacted river sediments, identifying previously undescribed microbial taxa with metabolic capabilities for plastic degradation and emerging contaminant breakdown.

2025
Article Tier 2

Bacterial signatures of anthropogenic pressures in a high-mountain river: a One Health study using full-length 16S profiling

Scientists studied bacteria in a Colombian mountain river and found that human activities like sewage discharge and industrial cooling dramatically changed the types of bacteria living in the water. Areas with more pollution had more harmful bacteria, including some linked to disease and antibiotic resistance. This research helps us understand how pollution affects water quality and could help communities better monitor and protect their water sources from health risks.

2026
Article Tier 2

Linear responses of soil microbiomes, metagenomic and metabolomic functioning across ecosystems along water gradients in the Altai region, northwestern China

Researchers analyzed soil microbial communities, their genetic functions, and metabolic profiles across four ecosystems along a water gradient in the Altai region of China. Microbial diversity and carbon and nitrogen cycling functions increased linearly with soil moisture, demonstrating how hydrology shapes ecosystem-level microbial processes.

2023 Research Square (Research Square) 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Toward an intensive understanding of sewer sediment prokaryotic community assembly and function

Researchers characterized prokaryotic communities in sewer sediments across multifunctional, commercial, and residential urban areas using 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing, finding significant compositional differences linked to land use and nutrient levels. Network analysis revealed the residential area harbored the most complex and stable microbial network, while stochastic processes dominated community assembly across all zones.

2023 Frontiers in Microbiology 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Community Composition and Function of Bacteria in Activated Sludge of Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plants

Researchers analyzed the bacterial communities in activated sludge from two municipal wastewater treatment plants in Shenzhen, China, using gene sequencing. They found that Proteobacteria dominated all samples and that nutrient levels and nitrogen compounds were the primary factors shaping microbial community structure. The study provides insights into how microbial communities function during wastewater treatment, which is relevant since these systems are known to both encounter and discharge microplastics.

2021 Water 59 citations