RT Journal Article
T1 Assessing the role of polyethylene microplastics as a vector for organic pollutants in soil: Ecotoxicological and molecular approaches
A1 Fajardo Martínez, Carmen María
A1 Martín, Carmen
A1 Costa Buitrago, Gonzalo Antonio
A1 Sánchez-Fortún Rodríguez, Sebastián
A1 Rodríguez Fernández, Casilda
A1 Lucas Burneo, José Julio De
A1 Nande, Mar
A1 Mengs, Gerardo
A1 Martín, Margarita
AB Microplastics (MPs), pharmaceuticals and pesticides are emerging pollutants with proposed negative impacts on the environment. Rising interest in investigations of MPs is likely related to their potential to accumulate in agricultural systems as the base of the food chain. We applied an integrated approach using classic bioassays and molecular methods to evaluate the impact associated with a mixture of three types of polyethylene (PE) microbeads, namely, white (W), blue (B), and fluorescent blue (FB), and their interactions with pollutants (OCs), including ibuprofen (IB), sertraline (STR), amoxicillin (AMX) and simazine (SZ), on different soil organisms. PE-MPs exhibited different abilities for the adsorption of each OC; W selectively adsorbed higher amounts of SZ, whereas B and FB preferably retained AMX.Standard soil was artificially contaminated with OCs and MPs (alone or combined with OCs) and incubated for 30 days. The presence of MPs or MPs and OCs (MIX) in soil did not produce any effect on Caenorhabditis elegans endpoint growth, reproduction, or survival. Inhibition of leaf growth in Zea mays was detected, but this negative effect declined over time, while the inhibition of root growth increased, especially when OCs (32%) or MIX (47%) were added. Moreover, the expression of the antioxidant genes CAT 1, SOD-1A and GST 1 on plants was affected by the treatments studied. The addition of MPs or MIX significantly affected the soil bacteria phylogenetic profile, which selectively enriched members of the bacterial community (particularly Proteobacteria). The predicted functional profiles of MP/MIX samples indicated a potential impact on the carbon and nitrogen cycle within the soil environment. Our results indicate that MPs and their capability to act as pollutant carriers affect soil biota; further studies should be carried out on the bioavailability of OCs adsorbed by microplastics and how long it takes to leach these OCs into different organisms and/or ecosystems.
PB Elsevier
SN 0045-6535, ESSN: 1879-1298
YR 2021
FD 2021-10-02
LK https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/4996
UL https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/4996
LA eng
NO Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (MICINN)
NO Universidad de Alcalá
DS Docta Complutense
RD 1 may 2024