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ABSTRACT:
PROVIDER: PRJNA1166957 | ENA |
REPOSITORIES: ENA
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Project description:The contamination of marine ecosystems with microplastics, such as the polymer polyethylene, a commonly used component of single-use packaging, is of global concern. Although it has been suggested that biodegradable polymers, such as polylactic acid, may be used to replace some polyethylene packaging, little is known about their effects on marine organisms. Blue mussels, Mytilus edulis, have become a “model organism” for investigating the effects of microplastics in marine ecosystems. We show here that repeated exposure, over a period of 52 days in an outdoor mesocosm setting, of M. edulis to polyethylene microplastics reduced the number of byssal threads produced and the attachment strength (tenacity) by ~50%. Exposure to either type of microplastic altered the haemolymph proteome and, although a conserved response to microplastic exposure was observed, overall polyethylene resulted in more changes to protein abundances than polylactic acid. Many of the proteins affected are involved in vital biological processes, such as immune- and stress- regulation, metabolism and cellular and structural development. Our study highlights the utility of mass spectrometry-based proteomics to assess the health of key marine organisms and identifies the potential mechanisms by which microplastics, both conventional and biodegradable, could affect their ability to form and maintain reefs.
2019-01-02 | PXD011567 | Pride
Project description:Although the biodegradation of biodegradable plastics in soil and compost is well-studied, there is little knowledge on the metabolic mechanisms of synthetic polymers degradation by marine microorganisms. Here, we present a multiomics study to elucidate the biodegradation mechanism of a commercial aromatic-aliphatic copolyester film by a marine microbial enrichment culture. The plastic film and each monomer can be used as sole carbon source. Our analysis showed that the consortium synergistically degrades the polymer, different degradation steps being performed by different members of the community. Analysis of gene expression and translation profiles revealed that the relevant degradation processes in the marine consortium are closely related to poly(ethylene terephthalate) biodegradation from terrestrial microbes. Although there are multiple genes and organisms with the potential to perform a degradation step, only a few of these are active during biodegradation. Our results elucidate the potential of marine microorganisms to mineralize biodegradable plastic polymers and describe the mechanisms of labor division within the community to get maximum energetic yield from a complex synthetic substrate.
2020-09-25 | PXD018391 | Pride
Project description:Understanding the environmental factors that shape microbial communities is crucial, especially in extreme environments, like Antarctica. Two main forces were reported to influence Antarctic soil microbes: birds and plants. Both birds and plants are currently undergoing unprecedented changes in their distribution and abundance due to global warming. However, we need to clearly understand the relationship between plants, birds and soil microorganisms. We therefore collected rhizosphere and bulk soils from six different sampling sites subjected to different levels of bird influence and colonized by Colobanthus quitensis and Deschampsia antarctica in the Admiralty Bay, King George Island, Maritime Antarctic. Microarray and qPCR assays targeting 16S rRNA genes of specific taxa were used to assess microbial community structure, composition and abundance and analyzed with a range of soil physico-chemical parameters. The results indicated significant rhizosphere effects in four out of the six sites, including areas with different levels of bird influence. Acidobacteria were significantly more abundant in soils with little bird influence (low nitrogen) and in bulk soil. In contrast, Actinobacteria were significantly more abundant in the rhizosphere of both plant species. At two of the sampling sites under strong bird influence (penguin colonies), Firmicutes were significantly more abundant in D. antarctica rhizosphere but not in C. quitensis rhizosphere. The Firmicutes were also positively and significantly correlated to the nitrogen concentrations in the soil. We conclude that the microbial communities in Antarctic soils are driven both by bird and plants, and that the effect is taxa-specific.
2012-06-01 | GSE33847 | GEO
Project description:Effects of biodegradable microplastics on sediment communities
| PRJEB48653 | ENA
Project description:Soil bacterial 16S rRNA V4 affected by biodegradable microplastics Targeted loci environmental
| PRJNA816652 | ENA