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  • Review Article
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Ecology of the plastisphere

Nature Reviews Microbiology volume 18, pages 139–151 (2020)Cite this article

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Abstract

The plastisphere, which comprises the microbial community on plastic debris, rivals that of the built environment in spanning multiple biomes on Earth. Although human-derived debris has been entering the ocean for thousands of years, microplastics now numerically dominate marine debris and are primarily colonized by microbial and other microscopic life. The realization that this novel substrate in the marine environment can facilitate microbial dispersal and affect all aquatic ecosystems has intensified interest in the microbial ecology and evolution of this biotope. Whether a ‘core’ plastisphere community exists that is specific to plastic is currently a topic of intense investigation. This Review provides an overview of the microbial ecology of the plastisphere in the context of its diversity and function, as well as suggesting areas for further research.

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Fig. 1: A timeline of plastic innovation, discovery and pollution.
Fig. 2: The lifecycle of plastic litter.
Fig. 3: The plastisphere community.
Fig. 4: Assessing community assembly.
Fig. 5: Vibrio blooms in the plastisphere.
Fig. 6: Degradation of plastic materials.

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Acknowledgements

We acknowledge the support of the US National Science Foundation (NSF) (OCE-1155671) and funds from the Florida Atlantic University (FAU) Harbor Branch World Class Faculty and Scholar Program and the FAU Honors College Biology to T.J.M. The work was also supported by NSF collaborative grants to L.A.A.-Z. (OCE-1155571) and E.R.Z. (OCE-1155379).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research and Utrecht University, Den Burg, The Netherlands

    Linda A. Amaral-Zettler & Erik R. Zettler

  2. The University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    Linda A. Amaral-Zettler

  3. Wilkes Honors College and Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL, USA

    Tracy J. Mincer

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  1. Linda A. Amaral-Zettler
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Contributions

L.A.A.-Z., E.R.Z. and T.J.M. researched data for the article, substantially contributed to discussion of the content, wrote the article, and reviewed and edited the manuscript before submission.

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Correspondence to Linda A. Amaral-Zettler.

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Nature Reviews Microbiology thanks H.-C. Flemming, M. Labrenz and the other, anonymous, reviewer(s) for their contribution to the peer review of this work.

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Supplementary Information

Glossary

Microplastics

Generally, plastic particles smaller than 5 mm in size.

Fragmentation

Physically breaking an item into smaller pieces.

Degradation

The physical, chemical or biological breakdown of a substrate (synthetic polymers, biomass) into smaller units.

Carrying capacity

The number of organisms that can be sustained in a given environment.

Species richness

The total number of different species in a community.

Evenness

A diversity index that refers to how equally abundant the different members of a given community are.

Beta diversity

A measure of the variation in species composition between two different environments.

Phototrophs

Organisms that harness light energy and convert it into chemical energy.

Predators

Organisms that kill and ingest other organisms for nutrition.

Symbionts

Organisms that live with another organism, where both derive benefits from the arrangement.

Heterotrophic

Types of organisms that use organic compounds as a carbon and energy source for biosynthesis.

Grazers

Organisms that ingest organisms or parts of organisms for nutrition.

Saprotrophs

Organisms that feed on the organic matter of decaying organisms.

Epibionts

Symbionts that live attached to the outside of another organism.

Parasites

Organisms that derive nutrients and energy from larger organisms while causing harm to their ‘host’.

Mariculture

Marine agriculture.

Manta trawls

Nets resembling the shape of a manta ray, used for sampling plankton and plastic at the surface of the ocean.

Redfield ratio

The consistent stoichiometric carbon:nitrogen:phosphorus ratio in marine phytoplankton, typically 106:16:1.

Biodegradation

The biological breakdown of a carbon-based product into water and carbon dioxide or methane.

Nanoplastics

Generally, plastic pieces smaller than 1 µm.

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Amaral-Zettler, L.A., Zettler, E.R. & Mincer, T.J. Ecology of the plastisphere. Nat Rev Microbiol 18, 139–151 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41579-019-0308-0

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