Adverse physiological and molecular level effects of polystyrene microplastics on freshwater microalgae

Xiao, Yao; Jiang, Xiaofeng; Liao, Yujun; Zhao, Weigao; Zhao, Peng; Li, Mei

doi:10.1016/j.chemosphere.2020.126914

Cited by 129 publications

(38 citation statements)

References 49 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The increase in Chl a might be an active response to the microalgal cell damage caused by MP, which try to absorb as much light energy as possible by improving chlorophyll content [41]. In addition to Chl a, a variety of photosynthetic pigments such as Chl b and carotenoids also exist on chloroplast membrane, all of which are involved in absorbing light energy for photosynthesis [17,42]. The contents of these photosynthetic pigments in microalgae may be affected by MP [43], such as Chl b and carotenoids were more sensitive to polystyrene MP than Chl a in freshwater microalgae Euglena gracilis [17].…”

Section: Chlorophyll Amentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition to Chl a, a variety of photosynthetic pigments such as Chl b and carotenoids also exist on chloroplast membrane, all of which are involved in absorbing light energy for photosynthesis [17,42]. The contents of these photosynthetic pigments in microalgae may be affected by MP [43], such as Chl b and carotenoids were more sensitive to polystyrene MP than Chl a in freshwater microalgae Euglena gracilis [17]. Moreover, the strain of A. pacificum ATHK is a PST-producing dinoflagellate, and the increase in Chl a content may also be related to PST biosynthesis in microalgal cells.…”

Section: Chlorophyll Amentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The exposure of polystyrene MP had negative effects on the growth, oxidative stress and cell micro-structure of Karenia mikimotoi [16]. Microplastics can cause dysregulation of gene expression in microalgae Euglena gracilis involved in cellular processes, genetic information processing, biological systems and metabolism [17]. Microplastic exposure can stimulate the production of extracellular polymers (EPS) by microalgae, which form heterogeneous aggregates with MP particles for sedimentation, thereby reducing MP exposure concentrations [15,[18][19][20].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Effects of Polystyrene Microplastics on Growth and Toxin Production of Alexandrium pacificum

Liu

Qiu

Tang

et al. 2021

Toxins

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Microplastics (MP) widely distributed in aquatic environments have adverse effects on aquatic organisms. Currently, the impact of MP on toxigenic red tide microalgae is poorly understood. In this study, the strain of Alexandriumpacificum ATHK, typically producing paralytic shellfish toxins (PST), was selected as the target. Effects of 1 and 0.1 μm polystyrene MP with three concentration gradients (5 mg L−1, 25 mg L−1 and 100 mg L−1) on the growth, chlorophyll a (Chl a), photosynthetic activity (Fv/Fm) and PST production of ATHK were explored. Results showed that the high concentration (100 mg L−1) of 1 μm and 0.1 μm MP significantly inhibited the growth of ATHK, and the inhibition depended on the size and concentration of MP. Contents of Chl a showed an increase with various degrees after MP exposure in all cases. The photosynthesis indicator Fv/Fm of ATHK was significantly inhibited in the first 11 days, then gradually returned to the level of control group at day 13, and finally was gradually inhibited in the 1 μm MP treatments, and promotion or inhibition to some degree also occurred at different periods after exposure to 0.1 μm MP. Overall, both particle sizes of MP at 5 and 25 mg L−1 had no significant effect on cell toxin quota, and the high concentration 100 mg L−1 significantly promoted the PST biosynthesis on the day 7, 11 and 15. No significant difference occurred in the cell toxin quota and the total toxin content in all treatments at the end of the experiment (day 21). All MP treatments did not change the toxin profiles of ATHK, nor did the relative molar percentage of main PST components. The growth of ATHK, Chl a content, Fv/Fm and toxin production were not affected by MP shading. This is the first report on the effects of MP on the PST-producing microalgae, which will improve the understanding of the adverse impact of MP on the growth and toxin production of A. pacificum.

show abstract

Section: Chlorophyll Amentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Chlorophyll Amentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Effects of Polystyrene Microplastics on Growth and Toxin Production of Alexandrium pacificum

Liu

Qiu

Tang

et al. 2021

Toxins

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…However, when microplastics and algal cells contacted with each other, adsorption and hetero-aggregation may become the main reason of toxicity. First, the algal cell surface is rough with flagella, which can provide combining sites for microplastics to adhere on the algae surface [97,[121][122][123][124]. The formed aggregation can not only affect the movement of microalgae but also block the absorption of light and substance exchange [97,100,125,126].…”

Section: Toxic Effects Of Microplastics On Marine Microalgaementioning

confidence: 99%

Current Progress on Marine Microplastics Pollution Research: A Review on Pollution Occurrence, Detection, and Environmental Effects

Liu

Wang

Zhu

et al. 2021

Water

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Recently, microplastics pollution has attracted much attention in the environmental field, as researchers have found traces of microplastics in both marine and terrestrial ecological environments. Here, we reviewed and discussed the current progress on microplastics pollution in the marine environment from three main aspects including their identification and qualification methods, source and distribution, and fate and toxicity in a marine ecosystem. Microplastics in the marine environment originate from a variety of sources and distribute broadly all around the world, but their quantitative information is still lacking. Up to now, there have been no adequate and standard methods to identify and quantify the various types of microplastics, which need to be developed and unified. The fate of microplastics in the environment is particularly important as they may be transferred or accumulated in the biological chain. Meanwhile, microplastics may have a high adsorption capacity to pollutants, which is the basic research to further study their fate and joint toxicity in the environment. Therefore, all the findings are expected to fill the knowledge gaps in microplastics pollution and promote the development of relative regulations.

show abstract

“…3a). It is worth mentioning that some authors tested more than one concentration class in their experiments (e.g., Lin et al 2020;Mao et al 2018;Sjollema et al 2016;Wu et al 2019;Xiao et al 2020;Yang et al 2020).…”

Section: Route Of Exposurementioning

confidence: 99%

Microplastics and freshwater microalgae: what do we know so far?

2021

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The constant entry of microplastics in several environmental matrices has been of great concern to the scientific community and to society in general, mainly due to the mysteries that surround the implications of this pollutant in the environment. Freshwater ecosystems are resources especially susceptible to variations in environmental quality, and the lack of data on the impacts caused by plastic fragments exacerbates the vulnerability of this environment. Considering the results of other studies, which demonstrate the increasing entry of polymeric fragments in the aquatic environment can lead to algae growth inhibition, an investigation was carried out to determine the current state of research on the interaction between microplastics and freshwater microalgae. In total, 20 scientific articles were analyzed. Different species were subjected to toxicological tests under controlled conditions in the laboratory with small microplastics (size range between 0.1 and 1000 lm), primary and secondary microplastics of different types of polymer. Four toxicity class of indicators were chosen to assess the microalgae response to exposure to microplastic in the selected studies: growth inhibition; photosynthetic activity; pigment analysis; and enzymatic activity and oxidative stress. In this review, a critical analysis is made on the effects of the shape, size, concentration, and duration of exposure to microplastics and research gaps are identified to guide future research priorities in this area of study.

show abstract

Adverse physiological and molecular level effects of polystyrene microplastics on freshwater microalgae

Cited by 129 publications

References 49 publications

Effects of Polystyrene Microplastics on Growth and Toxin Production of Alexandrium pacificum

Effects of Polystyrene Microplastics on Growth and Toxin Production of Alexandrium pacificum

Current Progress on Marine Microplastics Pollution Research: A Review on Pollution Occurrence, Detection, and Environmental Effects

Microplastics and freshwater microalgae: what do we know so far?

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About