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61,005 resultsShowing papers similar to The soil nematode exposome: Unraveling the impacts of particulate plastics from agroecosystems to one health
ClearNanoplastics induce molecular toxicity in earthworm: Integrated multi-omics, morphological, and intestinal microorganism analyses
Researchers used multi-omics analysis to study how even low concentrations of nanoplastics affect earthworms, important indicators of soil health. They found that nanoplastics accumulated in the earthworms' intestines, damaging their digestive and immune systems and disrupting gut microorganism communities. The study demonstrates that nanoplastics can cause molecular-level harm to soil organisms at concentrations that might be considered environmentally realistic.
Earthworm-microbiome interactions: Unlocking next-generation bioindicators and bioengineered solutions for soil and environmental health
This review explores how earthworms and their associated microbiomes can serve as bioindicators of soil contamination from pollutants including microplastics. Changes in earthworm gut microbial communities can act as early warning signals of soil pollution, and engineered earthworm-microbiome systems show potential for environmental remediation. The study suggests that understanding these biological interactions could lead to new biomonitoring tools for assessing microplastic contamination in terrestrial ecosystems.
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.
Assessing the impacts of microplastics on soil meso- and macro-fauna
This study aims to extend understanding of microplastic impacts beyond earthworms to include mites, collembolans, and other key soil invertebrate groups, developing ecotoxicology tests to establish risk assessment levels for microplastics in soil ecosystems.
Effects of Different Microplastics on Nematodes in the Soil Environment: Tracking the Extractable Additives Using an Ecotoxicological Approach
Researchers examined how different types of microplastics affect soil nematode populations by tracking extractable chemical additives released from the plastic particles. They found that microplastic composition, size, and shape influenced the types and amounts of chemicals leached into the soil, which in turn affected nematode survival and behavior. The study highlights that the indirect chemical effects of microplastics may be just as important as their physical presence in determining soil ecosystem impacts.
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.
What do we know about how the terrestrial multicellular soil fauna reacts to microplastic?
This review analyzed published studies on how multicellular soil organisms (including earthworms, mites, springtails, and nematodes) ingest and respond to microplastics, finding that most studies used unrealistically high concentrations and that ecologically relevant effects on soil fauna remain poorly characterized.
What do we know about how the terrestrial multicellular soil fauna reacts to microplastic?
This review synthesized studies on how soil-dwelling animals — including earthworms, insects, and mites — respond to microplastic contamination, finding evidence of ingestion, tissue accumulation, and harmful effects across multiple soil organism groups. However, most studies used unrealistically high concentrations, making it difficult to draw firm conclusions about risks at current environmental levels.
The impact of microplastic on nematodes: Soil type, plastic amount and aging as determinants for the fitness of Caenorhabditis elegans
Researchers tested how two types of microplastics, conventional polyethylene and biodegradable PLA/PBAT, affected tiny soil worms called nematodes across different soil types. Conventional plastic at high concentrations reduced worm reproduction and growth, while the biodegradable plastic caused no harm. Importantly, as microplastics aged in the soil over time, their negative effects worsened, suggesting the long-term impact of plastic pollution in agricultural soil may be greater than short-term studies indicate.
Pivotal role of earthworm gut protists in mediating antibiotic resistance genes under microplastic and sulfamethoxazole stress in soil–earthworm systems
Researchers found that gut protists in earthworms play a pivotal role in mediating the spread of antibiotic resistance genes when earthworms are co-exposed to microplastics and antibiotics in soil, identifying a previously overlooked biological pathway for AMR dissemination.
Microplastics and earthworms in soils: A case study on translocation, toxicity and fate
This conference abstract presents research on how earthworms in agricultural soils interact with microplastics, examining whether worms translocate particles deeper into soil, experience toxic effects, and alter the fate of microplastic contamination. Earthworms are key soil engineers, and their exposure to microplastics could have cascading effects on soil health.
Assessing the presence of microplastic in agriculture soils irrigated with treated waste waters using Lumbricus sp.: Ecotoxicological effects
Researchers collected earthworms from agricultural soils irrigated with treated wastewater in Morocco and found microplastics had accumulated in both the soil and the worms' tissues. The microplastic exposure caused oxidative stress and cellular damage in the earthworms. This study demonstrates that using treated wastewater for farming, a common practice in water-scarce regions, introduces microplastics into agricultural soil where they can harm soil organisms and potentially enter the food chain.
Microplastics in Motion: How Earthworm Guts Become Microbial Gateways through Plastic Surface Dynamics
This study tracked how microplastics move through earthworm digestive systems and found that the gut environment alters the microbial communities colonizing plastic surfaces, potentially transforming earthworms into vectors that spread plastic-associated microbes through soil ecosystems.
What do we know about how the terrestrial multicellular soil fauna reacts to microplastic?
This review analyzed the available literature on how soil-dwelling animals respond to microplastics and found evidence of uptake, bioaccumulation, and harmful effects across many groups including earthworms, springtails, and beetles. Most studies used high concentrations not yet found in real soils, limiting conclusions about current environmental risks.
Earthworms on a microplastics diet
Researchers found that environmentally relevant concentrations of polyethylene microplastics added to plant litter on soil surfaces led to reduced growth and elevated mortality in the earthworm Lumbricus terrestris, and that earthworms may themselves transport ingested microplastics deeper into soils.
Understanding the harmful effects of polyethylene microplastics on Eisenia fetida: A toxicological evaluation
Earthworms (Eisenia fetida) exposed to increasing concentrations of polyethylene microplastics in soil showed lower body weight, reduced reproductive output, and disrupted antioxidant defenses — with oxidative stress markers climbing nearly 1.3-fold at the highest dose. These findings confirm that microplastic pollution degrades soil ecosystem health at concentrations that could plausibly occur in contaminated agricultural land.
Accumulation of microplastics and Tcep pollutants in agricultural soil: Exploring the links between metabolites and gut microbiota in earthworm homeostasis
Researchers investigated the co-occurrence of polyethylene microplastics and the flame retardant TCEP in agricultural soils and their combined effects on earthworm health. The study found that co-exposure disrupted earthworm gut microbiota and metabolic homeostasis, suggesting that the interaction between microplastics and chemical additives in agricultural soil may pose greater ecological risks than either contaminant alone.
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.
Bioindicators of the impacts by microplastics in soil: A Systematic Review : a systematic review
This systematic review identifies organisms that can serve as bioindicators — living warning signs — for microplastic contamination in soil. Certain earthworms, springtails, and other soil creatures show measurable changes when exposed to microplastics, making them useful tools for monitoring pollution levels. Using these natural indicators could help farmers and environmental managers detect microplastic problems before they worsen.
How microplastics are destroying soil and human health
This review examined how microplastics harm soil health — disrupting soil structure, water retention, microbial communities, and nutrient cycling — and how soil degradation translates into risks for human health through food and water contamination. It argues that soil microplastic pollution deserves equivalent attention to aquatic contamination.
Plastic pollution in terrestrial ecosystems: Current knowledge on impacts of micro and nano fragments on invertebrates
This review summarizes research on how micro- and nanoplastics affect soil-dwelling invertebrates like earthworms and insects, finding that effects vary widely depending on plastic type, shape, concentration, and exposure time. While no broad conclusions could be drawn, the documented sublethal effects on soil organisms could disrupt the soil ecosystems that support the crops humans depend on for food.
Effect of polyethylene microplastics on tebuconazole bioaccumulation, oxidative stress, and intestinal bacterial community in earthworms
Researchers exposed earthworms to polyethylene microplastics of different sizes alongside a common fungicide and found that smaller microplastics caused the most severe oxidative stress and DNA damage. The microplastics also changed how much fungicide accumulated in the earthworms and disrupted their gut bacteria. This matters because earthworms are essential for soil health, and these effects could ripple through agricultural ecosystems that produce our food.
Transcriptomic and metabolic responses of earthworms to contaminated soil with polypropylene and polyethylene microplastics at environmentally relevant concentrations
Researchers studied how environmentally realistic concentrations of polypropylene and polyethylene microplastics affect earthworms at the molecular level. They found that both plastic types triggered oxidative stress, damaged digestive and immune systems, disrupted lipid metabolism, and altered the earthworms' ability to regulate water balance. The study suggests that even at concentrations commonly found in the environment, microplastic-contaminated soil poses measurable health risks to earthworms.
Assessing the role of polyethylene microplastics as a vector for organic pollutants in soil: Ecotoxicological and molecular approaches
Polyethylene microplastics were shown to act as vectors for organic pollutants including pharmaceuticals and pesticides in soil, with earthworm bioaccumulation assays and molecular endpoints revealing that MPs increased contaminant uptake compared to soil exposure alone.