Fitxers
Tipus de document
ArticleVersió
Versió publicadaData de publicació
Llicència de publicació
Si us plau utilitzeu sempre aquest identificador per citar o enllaçar aquest document: https://hdl.handle.net/2445/216004
Plastisphere in an Antarctic environment: A microcosm approach
Títol de la revista
Director/Tutor
ISSN de la revista
Títol del volum
Recurs relacionat
Resum
Microplastics are present even in remote regions like the Southern Ocean. Once in the water, they are rapidly colonised by marine microorganisms, forming the plastisphere. To address this issue in Antarctic waters, we conducted a microcosm experiment by incubating polypropylene, polyethylene, polystyrene microplastic pellets, and quartz for 33 days on Livingston Island, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica. We analysed plastic colonisation and plastisphere dynamics using scanning electron microscopy, flow cytometry, bacterial cultivation, qPCR, and 16S rRNA gene metabarcoding. Our results show rapid and consistent colonisation, although biomass formation was slightly slower than in other oceans, indicating unique environmental constraints. Time was the main factor influencing biofilm communities, while plastic polymer types had little effect. We observed a transition in microbial communities from early- to late-biofilm stages between days 12 and 19. Additionally, we described the bacterial plastisphere composition in this Antarctic environment, including the presence of hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria.
Matèries
Matèries (anglès)
Citació
Citació
MONRÀS-RIERA, Pere, ÁVILA ESCARTÍN, Conxita and BALLESTÉ PAU, Elisenda. Plastisphere in an Antarctic environment: A microcosm approach. Marine Pollution Bulletin. 2024. Vol. 208, num. 1-10. ISSN 0025-326X. [consulted: 25 of May of 2026]. Available at: https://hdl.handle.net/2445/216004