Papers

20 results
|
Article Tier 2

Gut microbiota of aquatic organisms: A key endpoint for ecotoxicological studies

This review examines how environmental contaminants including microplastics, pesticides, heavy metals, and pharmaceuticals affect the gut microbiota of aquatic organisms. Researchers highlight that changes in gut bacterial communities can serve as sensitive indicators of pollution exposure and may have downstream effects on host fitness. The study calls for improved methodologies to better link contaminant-induced shifts in gut microbiota to measurable health outcomes in aquatic species.

2019 Environmental Pollution 261 citations
Article Tier 2

A fishy gut feeling – current knowledge on gut microbiota in teleosts

This review summarizes what scientists know about the community of bacteria living in fish guts and how diet, environmental conditions, and pollutants shape that community. Microplastics and other pollutants can disrupt the gut microbiome in fish, harming their immune function and overall health. Since fish are a major food source for humans, understanding these effects matters for food safety.

2025 Frontiers in Marine Science 14 citations
Article Tier 2

Plastics in our water: Fish microbiomes at risk?

This review examined how microplastics and leached plasticizers affect the gut microbiomes of freshwater and marine fish, summarizing evidence for dysbiosis and reduced microbial diversity and discussing potential consequences for fish immunity, metabolism, and environmental fitness.

2021 Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology Part D Genomics and Proteomics 25 citations
Article Tier 2

Toxicological Evaluation of Effects of Some Environmental Pollutants on Intestinal Microbiota: Traditional Review

This review examines how various environmental pollutants affect the gut microbiome — the community of microorganisms in the intestinal tract. Microplastics are among the pollutants discussed, and their ability to alter gut microbiota composition is increasingly recognized as a mechanism by which plastic particles may harm human and animal health.

2023 Journal of Literature Pharmacy Sciences
Article Tier 2

Understanding the links between micro/nanoplastics-induced gut microbes dysbiosis and potential diseases in fish: A review

This review examines how microplastics and nanoplastics accumulate in fish intestines and disrupt their gut bacteria, potentially leading to inflammation, immune problems, and metabolic diseases. The disrupted gut microbiome can weaken the intestinal barrier, allowing harmful substances to enter the fish's body. Since fish are a major protein source for billions of people, understanding how microplastics damage fish gut health is important for assessing risks to human food safety.

2024 Environmental Pollution 14 citations
Article Tier 2

Characteristics of microplastic pollution in golden pompano (Trachinotus ovatus) aquaculture areas and the relationship between colonized-microbiota on microplastics and intestinal microflora

Researchers found that microplastics in golden pompano aquaculture areas colonize with distinct microbial communities that overlap with the fish's gut microbiota, increasing Proteobacteria and decreasing Firmicutes in the intestinal flora of fish living in more contaminated estuarine settings.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 39 citations
Article Tier 2

Feasibility Study on Biomonitoring of Microplastics in Fish Gastrointestinal Tracts

This feasibility study assessed using fish gastrointestinal tracts as biomonitors for environmental microplastic contamination, evaluating sampling protocols, species selection, and analytical methods to establish standardized biomonitoring frameworks for marine plastic pollution.

2022 Frontiers in Marine Science 25 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of microplastics on trophic parameters, abundance and metabolic activities of seawater and fish gut bacteria in mesocosm conditions

Mesocosm experiments showed that microplastics altered bacterial community structure and metabolic activity in both seawater and fish guts, suggesting that plastic pollution can disrupt microbial ecosystems in the marine environment. The findings raise concerns about how microplastic-driven microbiome changes could affect fish health and broader ecosystem functioning.

2018 Environmental Science and Pollution Research 61 citations
Article Tier 2

Microbiome Composition and Function in Aquatic Vertebrates: Small Organisms Making Big Impacts on Aquatic Animal Health

This review examines how microbiomes (communities of microorganisms) function in fish and marine mammals, and how environmental stressors like microplastics can disrupt them. Microplastics in water can alter the natural balance of beneficial microbes in aquatic animals, potentially affecting their health and the safety of seafood. Understanding these disruptions matters because changes in fish microbiomes could affect the quality and safety of the fish that end up on our plates.

2021 Frontiers in Microbiology 283 citations
Article Tier 2

Modern research on the study of the intestinal microbiome in fish (review)

This review examines recent research on the intestinal microbiome of fish, synthesizing findings on microbiome composition across more than 100 teleost species and exploring the microbiome as a potential biomarker for fish health and aquaculture optimization.

2023 Animal Husbandry and Fodder Production 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of environmental factors on host-microbiota interactions in the guts of aquatic organisms: A review

This review synthesizes how environmental stressors — including microplastics, heavy metals, photoperiod, and aquaculture feed additives — alter gut microbiota in fish and aquatic invertebrates, identifying common patterns of microbial disruption and compromised gut barrier integrity.

2025 Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology Part C Toxicology & Pharmacology 2 citations
Article Tier 2

The Characteristics of Intestinal Bacterial Community in Three Omnivorous Fishes and Their Interaction with Microbiota from Habitats

This study examined the gut bacterial communities of three omnivorous fish species in artificial fishery habitats, comparing them to bacteria in the surrounding water and sediment. Fish gut microbiomes partially reflected the environmental microbiota, suggesting habitat quality affects fish gut health. This is relevant to microplastics because microplastics alter both aquatic microbial communities and fish gut microbiomes.

2021 Microorganisms 15 citations
Article Tier 2

Interactions between environmental pollutants and gut microbiota: A review connecting the conventional heavy metals and the emerging microplastics

This review examines how environmental pollutants, including both heavy metals and microplastics, interact with gut bacteria in humans and animals. The authors found that these pollutants can disrupt the balance of gut microbiota, which may contribute to various health problems, and that gut bacteria can also transform pollutants in ways that change their toxicity.

2025 Environmental Research 13 citations
Article Tier 2

Impact of polypropylene microplastics and chemical pollutants on European sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax) gut microbiota and health

Researchers investigated how polypropylene microplastics, alone and combined with chemical pollutants, affect the gut health and microbiome of European sea bass. They found that microplastic ingestion altered the gut microbial community composition and that combined exposure with pollutants amplified the harmful effects. The study suggests that microplastics may serve as carriers for toxic chemicals, compounding their impact on fish health and potentially affecting seafood safety.

2021 The Science of The Total Environment 119 citations
Article Tier 2

Legacy metal contamination is reflected in the fish gut microbiome in an urbanised estuary

Researchers found that legacy metal contamination in a heavily urbanized estuary in Australia is altering the gut microbiome of local fish, with metal-exposed fish harboring more potentially harmful and inflammation-linked bacteria. This shows that gut microbiome changes in fish can serve as a sensitive biological indicator of environmental pollution, even when the contamination occurred decades ago.

2022 Environmental Pollution 24 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics as an aquatic pollutant affect gut microbiota within aquatic animals

This review examined how microplastics affect the gut microbiota of aquatic animals, analyzing the roles of plastic-associated chemicals and biofilms in disrupting microbial communities from ingestion through physiological impacts.

2021 Journal of Hazardous Materials 109 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of microplastic fibers on Lates calcarifer juveniles: Accumulation, oxidative stress, intestine microbiome dysbiosis and histological damage

Researchers fed juvenile barramundi fish polyethylene microplastic fibers for 56 days and found that while the fibers did not affect growth, they induced intestinal oxidative stress and disrupted the gut microbiome. Beneficial bacteria including Lactobacillus species were significantly reduced, while overall microbial diversity declined. The study suggests that microplastic fiber ingestion can compromise intestinal health in marine fish even without observable effects on growth.

2021 Ecological Indicators 60 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

Impact of microplastics on the intestinal microbiota: A systematic review of preclinical evidence

Across 28 preclinical studies, microplastics triggered intestinal dysbiosis characterized by increased Firmicutes and Proteobacteria and decreased Bacteroidetes, while increasing gut permeability and elevating pro-inflammatory cytokines including IL-1β, TNF-α, and IL-6.

2022 Life Sciences 70 citations
Article Tier 2

Global analysis of the adverse effects of micro- and nanoplastics on intestinal health and microbiota of fish

This large-scale analysis combined data from 118 studies to assess how micro- and nanoplastics affect fish gut health. The results show that these particles generally damage the intestinal lining, weaken immune defenses, and disrupt digestive function in fish. Younger fish and certain plastic types like PVC caused the most harm, highlighting that the specific characteristics of the plastic particles matter for understanding their toxicity.

2024 Journal of Hazardous Materials 20 citations
Article Tier 2

Multi-omics association pattern between gut microbiota and host metabolism of a filter-feeding fish in situ exposed to microplastics

Scientists exposed filter-feeding fish to environmentally realistic levels of microplastics and found that the particles reshaped gut bacteria communities, which in turn altered the fish's liver metabolism through changes in amino acid processing. This gut-microbiome-to-organ connection matters because it shows microplastics may affect human health not just through direct toxicity but by disrupting the beneficial bacteria in our digestive systems.

2025 Environment International 11 citations