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61,005 resultsShowing papers similar to The impact of microplastic contamination in cow manure on reproductive behavior and larval survival in the dung beetle Onthophagus taurus
ClearIdentification and quantification of macro- and microplastics on an agricultural farmland
Researchers examined how polystyrene microplastics affect the soil-dwelling springtail Folsomia candida and found that exposure altered gut microbiota composition and reduced reproductive output. The microplastics disrupted the balance of beneficial bacteria in the gut of these important soil organisms. The study suggests that microplastic contamination in soils could have broader consequences for soil health by affecting the organisms that help maintain ecosystem functions like nutrient cycling.
Microplastic contamination in farmyard manures: implications for sustainable agriculture
Researchers investigated microplastic abundance and characteristics in non-commercial farmyard manures - a largely understudied pathway for microplastic entry into agricultural soils. The study assessed how manure application may serve as a source of microplastic contamination in farmland, contributing to understanding of plastic pollution cycles in terrestrial agricultural ecosystems.
Microplastics inhibit the decomposition of soil organic matter by adult darkling beetles (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae)
An experiment with darkling beetles and microplastics made from ground tire rubber showed that the presence of rubber particles in organic soil reduced the beetles' ability to break down organic matter, disrupting a key decomposition process. This suggests microplastic contamination in soils can impair the ecological function of invertebrates that maintain healthy nutrient cycling.
Effects of environmentally relevant mixtures of microplastics on soil organisms
Researchers exposed earthworms and springtails to environmentally realistic mixtures of microplastics commonly found in agricultural soils treated with sewage sludge. They found that earthworms ingested microplastics in proportion to exposure levels, and at higher concentrations, both species showed reduced reproduction. The study provides evidence that real-world microplastic mixtures in farm soils can affect important soil organisms at concentrations already found in the environment.
The forgotten impacts of plastic contamination on terrestrial micro- and mesofauna: A call for research
This review highlights the overlooked impact of microplastics on tiny soil organisms like mites, springtails, and nematodes that play critical roles in keeping soil ecosystems healthy. Ingesting microplastics can harm their development and reproduction, which disrupts nutrient cycling and soil food webs. Since these organisms help maintain the soil that grows our food, their decline from plastic pollution could have cascading effects on agriculture and human nutrition.
Role of polyamide microplastic in altering microbial consortium and carbon and nitrogen cycles in a simulated agricultural soil microcosm
Researchers added polyamide microplastics to simulated agricultural soil and tracked their effects on microbial communities and nutrient cycling over time. They found that microplastics altered the composition of soil bacteria and disrupted both carbon and nitrogen cycling processes. The study highlights how microplastic contamination in farmland can affect the invisible but essential microbial processes that maintain soil health and fertility.
Impacts of Nano- and Microplastic Contamination on Soil Organisms and Soil–Plant Systems
Nano- and microplastic contamination was found to negatively affect soil organic matter dynamics and the activity of soil organisms. The research adds to growing evidence that plastic particles impair the biological processes that maintain soil health and fertility.
Influence of microplastics on feeding and energy reserves of terrestrial isopods Porcellio scaber
Researchers exposed land-dwelling pill bugs to food contaminated with microplastics at concentrations found in compost heaps, and measured effects on feeding behavior and energy reserves in the digestive gland. The study investigated whether environmentally realistic microplastic levels in soil affect terrestrial invertebrates, which are important links in soil food webs.
Microplastic digestion generates fragmented nanoplastics in soils and damages earthworm spermatogenesis and coelomocyte viability
Researchers discovered that earthworms can fragment polyethylene microplastics into even smaller nanoplastics through their digestive process in soil. The study also found that microplastic exposure damaged earthworm reproductive cells and immune cells, suggesting that the biological breakdown of microplastics in soil creates smaller particles that may be even more concerning for ecosystem health.
Microplastics negatively affect soil fauna but stimulate microbial activity: insights from a field-based microplastic addition experiment
A meta-analysis of microplastic studies found that microplastics negatively affect soil fauna abundance and diversity while stimulating soil microbial activity, based on data from multiple laboratory experiments. The opposing effects on fauna and microbes suggest that microplastics can shift soil community structure in ways that alter ecosystem functions like decomposition and nutrient cycling.
Microplastics in agroecosystems: A review of effects on soil biota and key soil functions
This review examines how microplastic and nanoplastic contamination in agricultural soils affects soil organisms and ecological functions. Researchers found that plastics enter farmland through multiple pathways including plastic mulch, sewage sludge, and irrigation water, and once present they alter soil properties and exhibit toxic behavior toward soil biota. The study identifies significant knowledge gaps about the long-term impacts of microplastic accumulation on agricultural productivity and food safety.
Underestimated and ignored? The impacts of microplastic on soil invertebrates—Current scientific knowledge and research needs
This review highlights the critical gap in research on how microplastics affect soil invertebrates, noting that soil ecosystems receive far more plastic pollution than oceans yet the ecological consequences for soil fauna remain poorly understood and largely unstudied.
Concentration-Dependent Impacts of Microplastics on Soil Nematode Community in Bulk Soils of Maize: Evidence From a Pot Experiment
Researchers found that polypropylene microplastics altered soil nematode community composition in a concentration-dependent manner, reducing bacterivore abundance and shifting the soil food web structure, indicating disrupted soil ecological functioning in agricultural settings.
Impact of Microplastics in Agricultural Soil on Nutrient Recycling and Fertility
This book chapter examines how microplastic accumulation in agricultural soils disrupts nutrient cycling, affects soil microbial communities, and impairs fertility, reviewing evidence from laboratory and field studies and discussing implications for sustainable food production.
Microplastic exposure reduced the defecation rate, altered digestive enzyme activities, and caused histological and ultracellular changes in the midgut tissues of the ground beetle (Blaps polychresta)
Researchers fed ground beetles microplastic-contaminated food and found that exposure slowed their digestion, disrupted digestive enzymes, and caused severe damage to their gut tissue at the cellular level. The beetles showed destroyed gut lining, abnormal cell structures, and dead cells in their midgut. Since ground beetles are important pest-controlling predators in agricultural fields, microplastic harm to these insects could disrupt the natural pest control that protects food crops.
Disruption of midgut homeostasis by microplastics in Spodoptera frugiperda: Insights into inflammatory and oxidative mechanisms
Researchers studied how polyethylene microplastics affect the gut of fall armyworms, a common agricultural pest insect. They found that microplastics caused gut inflammation and oxidative damage, disrupting normal gut function, which provides insight into how microplastic contamination in soil may affect insects throughout the food chain.
Polyethylene microplastics alter soil microbial community assembly and ecosystem multifunctionality
Researchers studied how polyethylene microplastics at different concentrations affect soil microbial communities and overall ecosystem function in a maize growing system. They found that higher concentrations of microplastics shifted microbial community composition, reduced beneficial bacteria involved in nutrient cycling, and impaired multiple soil ecosystem functions simultaneously. The study suggests that microplastic contamination in agricultural soils can undermine the biological processes that support healthy crop growth.
Effects of microplastics and drought on soil ecosystem functions and multifunctionality
Researchers tested how microplastic fibers and drought conditions interact to affect soil ecosystem functions in grassland plant communities. The study found that the combination of microplastics and drought negatively impacted nutrient cycling enzymes, soil respiration, and overall ecosystem multifunctionality, suggesting that microplastics may worsen the well-known damaging effects of drought on soil systems.
Sublethal effects of microplastics sourced from polypropylene agricultural plastics on four soil invertebrate species
Four soil invertebrate species were exposed to microplastics from polypropylene agricultural mulch at 0.005–5% concentrations in soil, finding reduced reproduction in enchytraeids and collembola and altered burrowing behavior in earthworms and isopods at higher doses.
The Impact of Microplastics on Soil Invertebrates
Microplastics have been detected throughout soils worldwide, and this editorial review summarises growing evidence that soil invertebrates — including earthworms, springtails, and beetles — ingest, accumulate, and are harmed by microplastic particles. Effects range from physical gut damage and reduced feeding to reproductive impairment, with cascading risks to soil health, nutrient cycling, and the broader food web. This matters because soil invertebrates are keystone organisms; harm to them can degrade the agricultural and ecological services that soils provide.
Effects and mechanism of microplastics on organic carbon and nitrogen cycling in agricultural soil: A review
This review summarizes how microplastic pollution in agricultural soils affects carbon and nitrogen cycling by altering soil properties, microbial communities, and enzymatic activity. Evidence indicates that microplastics can change organic matter degradation rates and nutrient cycling processes, with implications for soil health and agricultural productivity.
Quantifying the Effect of Dietary Microplastics on the Potential for Biological Uptake of Environmental Contaminants and Polymer Additives
This study quantified the effect of dietary microplastics on the potential for biological nitrogen fixation in soil systems, finding that MP ingestion by soil organisms disrupted gut microbiome function and reduced rates of nitrogen fixation relevant to soil fertility.
Effects of environmentally relevant mixtures of microplastics on terrestrial organisms
Researchers tested the effects of environmentally realistic microplastic mixtures on the earthworm Eisenia andrei and the springtail Folsomia candida as soil model organisms. Even at environmentally relevant concentrations, the microplastic mixture caused measurable negative effects on soil organism health and reproduction.
Emerging Microplastics Alter the Influences of Soil Animals on the Fungal Community Structure in Determining the Litter Decomposition of a Deciduous Tree
Researchers investigated how microplastics in forest soil affect the interactions between soil animals and fungal communities during leaf litter decomposition. They found that the presence of microplastics altered fungal community structure and disrupted the beneficial influence that soil animals normally have on decomposition processes. The study suggests that microplastic contamination in forest ecosystems could interfere with nutrient cycling by changing how decomposer communities function.