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Mondellini S, Schwarzer M, Völkl M, Jasinski J, Jérôme V, Scheibel T, Laforsch C, Freitag R. Size dependent uptake and trophic transfer of polystyrene microplastics in unicellular freshwater eukaryotes. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2024; 929:172470. [PMID: 38621530 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.172470] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2023] [Revised: 04/10/2024] [Accepted: 04/11/2024] [Indexed: 04/17/2024]
Abstract
Microplastics (MP) have become a well-known and widely investigated environmental pollutant. Despite the huge amount of new studies investigating the potential threat posed by MP, the possible uptake and trophic transfer in lower trophic levels of freshwater ecosystems remains understudied. This study aims to investigate the internalization and potential trophic transfer of fluorescent polystyrene (PS) beads (0.5 μm, 3.6 × 108 particles/mL; 6 μm, 2.1 × 105 particles/mL) and fragments (<30 μm, 5 × 103 particles/mL) in three unicellular eukaryotes. This study focuses on the size-dependent uptake of MP by two freshwater Ciliophora, Tetrahymena pyriformis, Paramecium caudatum and one Amoebozoa, Amoeba proteus, serving also as predator for experiments on potential trophic transfer. Size-dependent uptake of MP in all three unicellular eukaryotes was shown. P. caudatum is able to take up MP fragments up to 27.7 μm, while T. pyriformis ingests particles up to 10 μm. In A. proteus, small MP (PS0.5μm and PS6μm) were taken up via pinocytosis and were detected in the cytoplasm for up to 14 days after exposure. Large PS-MP (PS<30μm) were detected in A. proteus only after predation on MP-fed Ciliophora. These results indicate that A. proteus ingests larger MP via predation on Ciliophora (PS<30μm), which would not be taken up otherwise. This study shows trophic transfer of MP at the base of the aquatic food web and serves as basis to study the impact of MP in freshwater ecosystems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simona Mondellini
- Animal Ecology I and BayCEER, University of Bayreuth, 95447 Bayreuth, Germany
| | - Michael Schwarzer
- Animal Ecology I and BayCEER, University of Bayreuth, 95447 Bayreuth, Germany
| | - Matthias Völkl
- Process Biotechnology, University of Bayreuth, 95447 Bayreuth, Germany
| | - Julia Jasinski
- Biomaterials, University of Bayreuth, 95447 Bayreuth, Germany
| | - Valérie Jérôme
- Process Biotechnology, University of Bayreuth, 95447 Bayreuth, Germany
| | - Thomas Scheibel
- Biomaterials, University of Bayreuth, 95447 Bayreuth, Germany; Bayerisches Polymerinstitut (BPI), University of Bayreuth, 95447 Bayreuth, Germany; Bayreuther Zentrum für Kolloide und Grenzflächen (BZKG), University of Bayreuth, 95447 Bayreuth, Germany; Bayreuther Zentrum für Molekulare Biowissenschaften (BZMB), University of Bayreuth, 95447 Bayreuth, Germany; Bayreuther Materialzentrum (BayMAT), University of Bayreuth, 95447 Bayreuth, Germany
| | - Christian Laforsch
- Animal Ecology I and BayCEER, University of Bayreuth, 95447 Bayreuth, Germany.
| | - Ruth Freitag
- Process Biotechnology, University of Bayreuth, 95447 Bayreuth, Germany; Bayreuther Zentrum für Molekulare Biowissenschaften (BZMB), University of Bayreuth, 95447 Bayreuth, Germany.
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Matijaković Mlinarić N, Marušić K, Brkić AL, Marciuš M, Fabijanić TA, Tomašić N, Selmani A, Roblegg E, Kralj D, Stanić I, Njegić Džakula B, Kontrec J. Microplastics encapsulation in aragonite: efficiency, detection and insight into potential environmental impacts. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE. PROCESSES & IMPACTS 2024. [PMID: 38623703 DOI: 10.1039/d4em00004h] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/17/2024]
Abstract
Plastic pollution in aquatic ecosystems has become a significant problem especially microplastics which can encapsulate into the skeletons of organisms that produce calcium carbonates, such as foraminifera, molluscs and corals. The encapsulation of microplastics into precipitated aragonite, which in nature builds the coral skeleton, has not yet been studied. It is also not known how the dissolved organic matter, to which microplastics are constantly exposed in aquatic ecosystems, affects the encapsulation of microplastics into aragonite and how such microplastics affect the mechanical properties of aragonite. We performed aragonite precipitation experiments in artificial seawater in the presence of polystyrene (PS) and polyethylene (PE) microspheres, untreated and treated with humic acid (HA). The results showed that the efficiency of encapsulating PE and PE-HA microspheres in aragonite was higher than that for PS and PS-HA microspheres. The mechanical properties of resulting aragonite changed after the encapsulation of microplastic particles. A decrease in the hardness and indentation modulus of the aragonite samples was observed, and the most substantial effect occurred in the case of PE-HA microspheres encapsulation. These findings raise concerns about possible changes in the mechanical properties of the exoskeleton and endoskeleton of calcifying marine organisms such as corals and molluscs due to the incorporation of pristine microplastics and microplastics exposed to dissolved organic matter.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Katarina Marušić
- Division of Materials Chemistry, Ruđer Bošković Institute, Bijenička cesta 54, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia.
| | | | - Marijan Marciuš
- Division of Materials Chemistry, Ruđer Bošković Institute, Bijenička cesta 54, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia.
| | - Tamara Aleksandrov Fabijanić
- The Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Naval Architecture, University of Zagreb, Ivana Lučića 5, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Nenad Tomašić
- Department of Geology, Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, Horvatovac 102a, Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Atiđa Selmani
- Pharmaceutical Technology and Biopharmacy, Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Graz, Universitätsplatz 1, 8010 Graz, Austria
| | - Eva Roblegg
- Pharmaceutical Technology and Biopharmacy, Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Graz, Universitätsplatz 1, 8010 Graz, Austria
| | - Damir Kralj
- Division of Materials Chemistry, Ruđer Bošković Institute, Bijenička cesta 54, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia.
| | - Ivana Stanić
- Division of Materials Chemistry, Ruđer Bošković Institute, Bijenička cesta 54, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia.
| | - Branka Njegić Džakula
- Division of Materials Chemistry, Ruđer Bošković Institute, Bijenička cesta 54, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia.
| | - Jasminka Kontrec
- Division of Materials Chemistry, Ruđer Bošković Institute, Bijenička cesta 54, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia.
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Wang N, Wang Q, Song S, Sun Z, Zhao A, Ali A, Xu G, Zhong X, Wang F, Xu H. Microplastics drive community dynamics of periphytic protozoan fauna in marine environments. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2024; 31:13327-13334. [PMID: 38244160 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-024-32054-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2023] [Accepted: 01/14/2024] [Indexed: 01/22/2024]
Abstract
The pollution of microplastics (MPs) to the marine environment has become a widespread focus of attention. To assess MP-induced ecotoxicity on marine ecosystems, periphytic protozoan communities were used as test organisms and exposed to five concentrations of MPs: 0, 1, 5, 25, and 125 mg l-1. Protozoan samples were collected using microscope slides from coastal waters of the Yellow Sea, northern China. A total of 13 protozoan species were identified and represented different tolerance to MP-induced ecotoxicity. Inhibition effects of MPs on the test protozoan communities were clearly shown in terms of both the species richness and individual abundance and followed linear relationships to MP concentrations. The community patterns were driven by MPs and significantly shifted at concentrations over 5 mg l-1. Our findings demonstrated that MPs may induce the community-level ecotoxic response of periphytic protozoan fauna and followed significant community dynamics. Thus, it is suggested that periphytic protozoan fauna may be used as useful community-based test model organisms for evaluating MP-induced ecotoxicity in marine environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ning Wang
- Laboratory of Microbial Ecology, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, 266003, China
| | - Qiaoling Wang
- Laboratory of Microbial Ecology, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, 266003, China
| | - Suihan Song
- Laboratory of Microbial Ecology, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, 266003, China
| | - Zhiyi Sun
- Laboratory of Microbial Ecology, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, 266003, China
| | - Anqi Zhao
- Laboratory of Microbial Ecology, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, 266003, China
| | - Awais Ali
- Laboratory of Microbial Ecology, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, 266003, China
| | - Guangjian Xu
- College of Environment and Safety Engineering, Qingdao University of Science & Technology, Qingdao, 266042, China
| | - Xiaoxiao Zhong
- College of Environment and Safety Engineering, Qingdao University of Science & Technology, Qingdao, 266042, China
| | - Fayuan Wang
- College of Environment and Safety Engineering, Qingdao University of Science & Technology, Qingdao, 266042, China
| | - Henglong Xu
- Laboratory of Microbial Ecology, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, 266003, China.
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da Silva JVF, Lansac-Tôha FM, Segovia BT, Amadeo FE, Braghin LDSM, Velho LFM, Sarmento H, Bonecker CC. Experimental evaluation of microplastic consumption by using a size-fractionation approach in the planktonic communities. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2022; 821:153045. [PMID: 35033570 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.153045] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2021] [Revised: 01/06/2022] [Accepted: 01/07/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
The increasing amount of plastic particles introduced into continental aquatic environments has drawn the attention of researchers around the globe. These particles can be assimilated by a wide range of aquatic organisms, from microorganisms to fish, causing detrimental effects on trophic webs. Using an experimental approach, we investigated the effect of microplastic particles of different sizes on the planktonic trophic chain by sampling natural plankton communities from a lake located in the Upper Paraná River floodplain, Brazil. Zooplankton samples were collected at the beginning of the experiment and after 36 h of incubation. Microplastic particles (MP) samples were taken every 12 h. The effect of MP particle consumption from the control and treatment groups indicates significant effects by all plankton size fractions (p < 0.05). We demonstrated that the presence of MP particles can significantly affect the trophic web, furthermore, we detected the effect of higher consumption effect of smaller size MP particles. This study suggest that the largest MP consumption effects come from the lower trophic levels of the trophic chain, such as protists. The competitive effect of large predators is a crucial factor in controlling the abundance of populations, and although they did not directly consume MP particles, they ingest them indirectly through prey capable of absorbing these compounds in the environment. Our findings warn that MP particles enter the food webs of tropical regions when exposed to these pollutants, and that the presence of these particles should not be neglected when studying freshwater ecosystems.
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Affiliation(s)
- João Vitor Fonseca da Silva
- Graduate Program of Compared Biology (PGB), State University of Maringá (UEM), Centre of Research in Limnology, Ichthyology and Aquaculture (Nupélia), Maringá, Paraná, Brazil.
| | - Fernando Miranda Lansac-Tôha
- Graduate Program in Ecology of Inland Water Ecosystems (PEA), State University of Maringá (UEM), Centre of Research in Limnology, Ichthyology and Aquaculture (Nupélia), Maringá, Paraná, Brazil
| | - Bianca Trevizan Segovia
- Graduate Program in Ecology of Inland Water Ecosystems (PEA), State University of Maringá (UEM), Centre of Research in Limnology, Ichthyology and Aquaculture (Nupélia), Maringá, Paraná, Brazil; Botany and Biodiversity Research Centre, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Felipe Emiliano Amadeo
- Graduate Program in Ecology of Inland Water Ecosystems (PEA), State University of Maringá (UEM), Centre of Research in Limnology, Ichthyology and Aquaculture (Nupélia), Maringá, Paraná, Brazil; Botany and Biodiversity Research Centre, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Louizi de Souza Magalhães Braghin
- Graduate Program in Ecology of Inland Water Ecosystems (PEA), State University of Maringá (UEM), Centre of Research in Limnology, Ichthyology and Aquaculture (Nupélia), Maringá, Paraná, Brazil
| | - Luiz Felipe Machado Velho
- Graduate Program in Ecology of Inland Water Ecosystems (PEA), State University of Maringá (UEM), Centre of Research in Limnology, Ichthyology and Aquaculture (Nupélia), Maringá, Paraná, Brazil; Graduate Program of Clean Technology, Cesumar University Center (UNICESUMAR), Maringá, Paraná, Brazil
| | - Hugo Sarmento
- Graduate Program in Ecology of Inland Water Ecosystems (PEA), State University of Maringá (UEM), Centre of Research in Limnology, Ichthyology and Aquaculture (Nupélia), Maringá, Paraná, Brazil; Department of Hydrobiology, Federal University of São Carlos, São Carlos, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Claudia Costa Bonecker
- Graduate Program of Compared Biology (PGB), State University of Maringá (UEM), Centre of Research in Limnology, Ichthyology and Aquaculture (Nupélia), Maringá, Paraná, Brazil; Graduate Program in Ecology of Inland Water Ecosystems (PEA), State University of Maringá (UEM), Centre of Research in Limnology, Ichthyology and Aquaculture (Nupélia), Maringá, Paraná, Brazil
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Bulannga RB, Schmidt S. Uptake and accumulation of microplastic particles by two freshwater ciliates isolated from a local river in South Africa. ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2022; 204:112123. [PMID: 34571033 DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2021.112123] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2021] [Revised: 08/24/2021] [Accepted: 09/21/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Microplastics are considered environmental pollutants of serious concern. In freshwater environments, they can affect aquatic biota and accumulate along the food web. Therefore, this study investigated the capacity of bacterivorous freshwater ciliates, essential members of the aquatic food chain, to ingest plain and fluorescently-labeled polystyrene microspheres. Two holotrich ciliates were isolated from a stream in KwaZulu-Natal (South Africa) and identified as members of the genera Paramecium and Tetrahymena based on morphological characteristics and 18S rRNA gene sequence analysis. While the larger bacterivorous ciliate Paramecium sp. strain RB1 ingested all three sizes of plain polystyrene microbeads tested (2,5,10 μm), the smaller sized Tetrahymena sp. strain RB2 only ingested microbeads of 2 and 5 μm. The two ciliates ingested polystyrene microbeads at rates ranging from 1650 to 3870 particles x ciliate-1 x hour-1 for all particle sizes ingested, matching rates determined for selected microbial prey (E. coli, S. cerevisiae) of similar size. The ability to ingest non-nutritious microplastic particles was confirmed for both ciliates using fluorescently-labeled microbeads as these were detected in food vacuoles by fluorescence microscopy. Therefore, ciliates such as Paramecium sp. strain RB1 and Tetrahymena sp. strain RB2 can contribute to the transfer and bioaccumulation of microplastics in freshwater food webs in South Africa.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rendani B Bulannga
- Discipline of Microbiology, School of Life Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Private Bag X01, Pietermaritzburg, 3209, South Africa
| | - Stefan Schmidt
- Discipline of Microbiology, School of Life Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Private Bag X01, Pietermaritzburg, 3209, South Africa.
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Drago C, Weithoff G. Variable Fitness Response of Two Rotifer Species Exposed to Microplastics Particles: The Role of Food Quantity and Quality. TOXICS 2021; 9:toxics9110305. [PMID: 34822696 PMCID: PMC8619062 DOI: 10.3390/toxics9110305] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2021] [Revised: 11/05/2021] [Accepted: 11/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Plastic pollution is an increasing environmental problem, but a comprehensive understanding of its effect in the environment is still missing. The wide variety of size, shape, and polymer composition of plastics impedes an adequate risk assessment. We investigated the effect of differently sized polystyrene beads (1-, 3-, 6-µm; PS) and polyamide fragments (5–25 µm, PA) and non-plastics items such as silica beads (3-µm, SiO2) on the population growth, reproduction (egg ratio), and survival of two common aquatic micro invertebrates: the rotifer species Brachionus calyciflorus and Brachionus fernandoi. The MPs were combined with food quantity, limiting and saturating food concentration, and with food of different quality. We found variable fitness responses with a significant effect of 3-µm PS on the population growth rate in both rotifer species with respect to food quantity. An interaction between the food quality and the MPs treatments was found in the reproduction of B. calyciflorus. PA and SiO2 beads had no effect on fitness response. This study provides further evidence of the indirect effect of MPs in planktonic rotifers and the importance of testing different environmental conditions that could influence the effect of MPs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claudia Drago
- Department for Ecology and Ecosystem Modelling, University of Potsdam, 14469 Potsdam, Germany;
- Correspondence:
| | - Guntram Weithoff
- Department for Ecology and Ecosystem Modelling, University of Potsdam, 14469 Potsdam, Germany;
- Berlin-Brandenburg Institute of Advanced Biodiversity Research (BBIB), 14195 Berlin, Germany
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Bermúdez J, Swarzenski P. A microplastic size classification scheme aligned with universal plankton survey methods. MethodsX 2021; 8:101516. [PMID: 34754787 PMCID: PMC8563659 DOI: 10.1016/j.mex.2021.101516] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2021] [Accepted: 09/13/2021] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Microplastics (MP) are a pollutant that can be found in all marine ecosystems. Currently one of the most used forms to classify them is through their size. However, the current size categories in use cover an extremely wide range of sizes and are not based on a biological or physical basis. Thus, here we propose to harmonize the MP size categories with the ones already in used on plankton research for more than 120 years. This will allow the implementation of more refined MP size classes that are connected to a biological reality and will also enable the comparison of a myriad of literature on plankton research with the new work on MP.
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Affiliation(s)
- J.R. Bermúdez
- International Atomic Energy Agency, Principality of Monaco, Monaco
- Facultad de Ingeniería Marítima y Ciencias del Mar, Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral ESPOL, Campus Gustavo Galindo, Guayaquil, Ecuador
- Galapagos Marine Research and Exploration, GMaRE, Joint ESPOL-CDF program, Charles Darwin Research Station, Galapagos Islands, Ecuador
| | - P.W. Swarzenski
- International Atomic Energy Agency, Principality of Monaco, Monaco
- USGS Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center, Santa Cruz, United States
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