Spatial and seasonal variation in diversity and structure of microbial biofilms on marine plastics in Northern European waters

Abstract

Plastic pollution is now recognised as a major threat to marine environments and marine biota. Recent research highlights that diverse microbial species are found to colonise plastic surfaces (the plastisphere) within marine waters. Here, we investigate how the structure and diversity of marine plastisphere microbial community vary with respect to season, location and plastic substrate type. We performed a 6-week exposure experiment with polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles in the North Sea (UK) as well as sea surface sampling of plastic polymers in Northern European waters. Scanning electron microscopy revealed diverse plastisphere communities comprising prokaryotic and eukaryotic microorganisms. Denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) and sequencing analysis revealed that plastisphere microbial communities on PET fragments varied both with season and location and comprised of bacteria belonging to Bacteroidetes, Proteobacteria, Cyanobacteria and members of the eukaryotes Bacillariophyceae and Phaeophyceae. Polymers sampled from the sea surface mainly comprised polyethylene, polystyrene and polypropylene particles. Variation within plastisphere communities on different polymer types was observed, but communities were primarily dominated by Cyanobacteria. This research reveals that the composition of plastisphere microbial communities in marine waters varies with season, geographical location and plastic substrate type.

Dangerous hitchhikers? Evidence for potentially pathogenic Vibrio spp. on microplastic particles

“…1). Prior studies already reported high portions of these three polymers in the course of various samplings in marine and coastal environments which mirrors our results (Browne et al, 2010;Moret-Ferguson et al, 2010;Oberbeckmann et al, 2014) and furthermore reflect the usage of these polymers in the worldwide economy. In the United States polyethylene, polystyrene, polypropylene and polyethylene terephthalate are the most widely produced and disposed synthetic polymers (Barnes et al, 2009).…”

“…Recently the microbial community on marine plastics was targeted in several studies, highlighting the composition and diversity of plastic-attached microorganisms (Carson et al, 2013;Zettler et al, 2013;Oberbeckmann et al, 2014;Reisser et al, 2014;Amaral-Zettler et al, 2015;De Tender et al, 2015). Within the microbial community on the "Plastisphere" (Zettler et al, 2013) sequences related to the genus Vibrio, a group of bacteria also containing serious pathogens, were found (De Tender et al, 2015;Zettler et al, 2013).…”

“…The diverse microbial communities on marine plastic debris differed clearly from the surrounding seawater (Zettler et al, 2013;Oberbeckmann et al, 2014;Amaral-Zettler et al, 2015;De Tender et al, 2015).…”

“…chemotaxis, cell multiplication, biofilm formation, and pathogenicity. With respect to plastic microbial communities, Oberbeckmann et al (2014) found that the structure and taxonomic composition of these plastic associated communities vary with plastic type, but also with geographical location and season. Moreover, Amaral-Zettler et al (2015) found that "Plastisphere" communities of the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean clustered more by geography than by polymer type, with exception of polystyrene that showed significant differences to polyethylene and polypropylene.…”

“…Furthermore, Amaral-Zettler et al (2015) reported that "Plastisphere" communities are genetically unique from the free marine water communities that envelop them and possess dominant taxa that are highly variable and diverse. Moreover, the composition of biofilm communities on plastic in marine habitats varies with season, geographical location and plastic substrate type (Oberbeckmann et al, 2014). Zettler et al (2013) have suggested that plastic particles may serve as vectors for the dispersal of human pathogens (Vibrio spp.).…”