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61,005 resultsShowing papers similar to Altered Biological Responses of Primary Producers to Multiple Stressors in the Presence of Nanoplastics
ClearBiological Responses to Climate Change and Nanoplastics Are Altered in Concert: Full-Factor Screening Reveals Effects of Multiple Stressors on Primary Producers
Using high-throughput screening of a freshwater green alga, researchers tested how nanoplastics interact with multiple climate change stressors (temperature, CO2, pH, UV), finding that nanoplastics combined with warming or UV caused greater harm than either alone, and that climate change will likely amplify nanoplastic toxicity.
The organism fate of inland freshwater system under micro-/nano-plastic pollution: A review of past decade.
This review synthesized a decade of research on how micro- and nano-plastics affect freshwater organisms including microalgae, macrophytes, zooplankton, benthic invertebrates, and fish, finding that impacts range from impaired photosynthesis and oxidative stress to reproductive disruption and behavioral changes across multiple biological levels.
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.
Dominant effects of elevated CO2 over microplastics on physiological and microbial responses of submerged aquatic plants in eutrophic waters
Researchers investigated the combined effects of elevated CO2 and microplastics on submerged aquatic plants in eutrophic water, finding that elevated CO2 dominated over microplastics in determining plant physiological and microbial responses. The study highlights that climate change variables may override microplastic stress in some aquatic plant systems.
Micro/nano-plastics and microalgae in aquatic environment: Influence factor, interaction, and molecular mechanisms.
This review examined the interactions between micro/nanoplastics and microalgae in aquatic environments, summarizing how plastic particle size, surface chemistry, and co-pollutants influence algal toxicity through oxidative stress, photosynthesis inhibition, and gene expression changes.
Dual impacts of elevated pCO2 on the ecological effects induced by microplastics and nanoplastics: A study with Chlamydomonas reinhardtii
Researchers examined how freshwater acidification from elevated carbon dioxide interacts with polystyrene micro- and nanoplastics to affect a common green algae species. They found that smaller nanoplastics caused greater harm than larger microplastics, primarily through oxidative stress, while acidification alone actually promoted algal growth. The study reveals that climate change and plastic pollution can interact in unexpected ways, with acidification sometimes masking or modifying the toxic effects of plastic particles.
Finding the missing piece of the aquatic plastic pollution puzzle: Interaction between primary producers and microplastics
This review examines the understudied interactions between microplastics and aquatic primary producers such as algae and cyanobacteria. Evidence indicates that microplastics can alter photosynthesis, growth rates, gene expression, and colony morphology in these organisms, potentially through adhesion or transfer of adsorbed pollutants. The authors argue that understanding microplastic impacts on primary producers is a critical missing piece in assessing the full ecological consequences of plastic pollution in aquatic ecosystems.
Micro/nanoplastic-induced stress in microalgae: Latest laboratory evidence and knowledge gaps
This review compiled laboratory evidence on how micro- and nanoplastics stress microalgae — the base of aquatic food webs — covering effects on photosynthesis, growth, oxidative stress, and toxin production. The authors identify key knowledge gaps including environmentally realistic concentrations and combined contaminant effects.
Complex interactions among temperature, microplastics and cyanobacteria may facilitate cyanobacteria proliferation and microplastic deposition
Researchers investigated how microplastics interact with temperature and nutrient conditions to affect cyanobacterial growth, finding that microplastics can alter cyanobacterial physiology and potentially exacerbate bloom formation under warming conditions.
Effects of polystyrene nanoplastics on the physiological and biochemical characteristics of microalga Scenedesmus quadricauda
Polystyrene nanoplastics were found to disrupt the physiology and biochemistry of freshwater microalgae, affecting photosynthesis, growth rates, and oxidative stress markers at environmentally relevant concentrations. The results highlight nanoplastics as a threat to phytoplankton, the base of freshwater food webs.
Ecotoxicity of micro- and nanoplastics on aquatic algae: Facts, challenges, and future opportunities
This review provides a comprehensive assessment of how micro- and nanoplastics harm aquatic algae, which form the base of ocean and freshwater food chains. The toxic effects include reduced growth, oxidative stress, and disrupted photosynthesis, with nanoplastics generally causing more damage than larger particles. Since algae support the entire aquatic food web, their decline from plastic pollution could reduce the quality and safety of fish and shellfish consumed by people.
Micro- and nanoplastic stress intensifies Microcystis aeruginosa physiology and toxin risks under environmentally relevant water chemistry conditions
Researchers exposed the cyanobacterium Microcystis aeruginosa to environmentally relevant concentrations of micro- and nanoplastics, finding both significantly enhanced algal biomass and microcystin toxin production, with nanoplastics additionally promoting extracellular toxin release.
Genome-Wide Molecular Adaptation in Algal Primary Productivity Induced by Prolonged Exposure to Environmentally Realistic Concentration of Nanoplastics
Researchers exposed algae to three types of nanoplastics at realistic environmental levels for 100 days and found the algae adapted by increasing their numbers and photosynthetic activity. However, this adaptation came with significant changes in gene expression and DNA modification patterns, meaning the nanoplastics fundamentally altered the algae's biology. Since algae are the foundation of aquatic food chains, these hidden molecular changes could have ripple effects through ecosystems that eventually affect human food sources.
Microplastics in freshwater ecosystems : effects and drivers
This thesis assessed how microplastic exposure affects freshwater microorganisms, macroinvertebrates, and other organisms in freshwater ecosystems, finding that microplastics are a pervasive contaminant of freshwater environments with unclear but potentially significant ecological impacts.
Molecular mechanism for combined toxicity of micro(nano)plastics and carbon nanofibers to freshwater microalgae Chlorella pyrenoidosa
Researchers tested how microplastics, nanoplastics, and carbon nanofibers affect freshwater algae individually and in combination, finding that the combined effects were significantly worse than either pollutant alone. Nanoplastics combined with carbon nanofibers caused the most severe cellular stress, damaging cell membranes, increasing oxidative stress, and disrupting energy metabolism. Since algae form the base of aquatic food chains, this damage could cascade through ecosystems and affect the safety of water and seafood for humans.
Meta-analysis for systematic review of global micro/nano-plastics contamination versus various freshwater microalgae: Toxicological effect patterns, taxon-specific response, and potential eco-risks
A meta-analysis of 1,071 observations found that nanoplastics cause more severe cell membrane damage than microplastics, while microplastics more strongly inhibit photosynthesis in freshwater microalgae. Among polymer types, polyamide caused the highest growth inhibition, polystyrene induced the most toxin release, and diatoms were the most sensitive algal group while cyanobacteria showed exceptional resilience.
Rethinking the effects of micro/nanoplastics from the global environmental change and systematic perspective: An aquatic environmental system-based comprehensive assessment approach of micro/nanoplastic impacts
Researchers developed an aquatic environmental system-based comprehensive assessment method (ACAM) to evaluate micro/nanoplastic impacts alongside other global environmental change factors, applying it to freshwater systems in Saskatchewan, Canada. Using Asterococcus superbus microalgae across ten endpoints, the study found polystyrene nanoplastics and nitrogen had antagonistic growth interactions, while pH, dissolved organic matter, and nitrogen were more significant stressors than nanoplastics at the tested sites.
Evaluating physiological responses of microalgae towards environmentally coexisting microplastics: A meta-analysis
A meta-analysis of 52 studies found that microplastics inhibit microalgal growth and photosynthesis and induce oxidative damage, though microalgae can recover over time. Cyanobacteria are more vulnerable than green algae, and the relative size of microplastics to algal cells governs the mechanism of impact, while aged versus pristine microplastics have opposite effects on extracellular polymeric substance and microcystin production.
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.
Combined Impact of Nanoplastics and Temperature on Green Algae: Implications for Growth, Lipid Content and Organic Exudates
Researchers exposed freshwater green algae to polymethylmethacrylate nanoparticles at three concentrations and two temperatures, finding that higher temperatures stimulated growth at low nanoparticle concentrations but not at the highest concentration, while fatty acid composition and algal organic matter exudates were altered by both stressors.
Micro- and nanoplastics effects in a multiple stressed marine environment
Researchers examined how micro- and nanoplastics interact with other environmental stressors in marine settings, finding that realistic multi-stressor scenarios can amplify or modify plastic toxicity in ways single-exposure studies miss.
The combined effects of ocean warming and microplastic pollution on marine phytoplankton community dynamics
Researchers studied the combined effects of microplastic pollution and rising ocean temperatures on tiny marine plants called phytoplankton. While microplastics alone had minimal impact at current temperatures, when combined with warmer water conditions, phytoplankton biomass dropped by 41% and diversity fell by nearly 39%. The study suggests that climate change may dramatically amplify the harmful effects of microplastic pollution on the ocean organisms responsible for a significant portion of global carbon capture.
Effect of plastic pollution on freshwater flora: A meta-analysis approach to elucidate the factors influencing plant growth and biochemical markers
Meta-analysis of 43 studies found that higher concentrations of micro- and nanoplastics negatively affected aquatic plant growth while increasing protein content and antioxidant enzyme activity as a stress response. Among polymers, PVC most strongly disrupted photosynthetic pigments, and algal species were the most growth-sensitive plant group.
Microplastics disrupt microalgal carbon fixation: Efficiency and underlying mechanisms
Researchers exposed the microalga Chlorella pyrenoidosa to polyethylene and polyvinyl chloride microplastics and found up to 39% inhibition of carbon fixation, driven by reduced chlorophyll content, increased oxidative stress, and downregulation of genes in the Calvin cycle and chlorophyll metabolism, with implications for aquatic carbon cycling.