The Effects of Microplastic Pollution on Aquatic Microorganisms: A review of the sources, fate, and effects

Microplastics provide a extensive surface for microbial colonization in aquatic ecosystems. The formation of microorganism-microplastic complexes, such as biofilms, maximizes the degradation of organic matter and horizontal gene transfer. microplastic affect the structure and function of microbial communities. Dispersal of microplastic is concomitant with that of their associated microorganisms and their mobile genetic elements, including antibiotic resistance genes, islands of pathogenicity, and diverse metabolic pathways. The presence of microplastics in the marine environment poses a great threat to the entire ecosystem and has received much attention lately as the presence has greatly impacted oceans, lakes, seas, rivers and even the Polar Regions. Also, Coastal and marine areas are constantly under continuous and increasing pressure from the activities of humans. Microorganisms play essential roles in the ecological fate of microplastics pollution, potentially yielding positive and negative effects. This study provides a holistic view of ongoing microplastics and related microbial research, which may be useful for future microplastics biodegradation studies.

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Keywords: Microplastics (MP) , biofilms , Microbial ecology , Aquatic ecosystems