Biodeterioration of Untreated Polypropylene Microplastic Particles by Antarctic Bacteria

Polymers

MohdYunus Abd Shukor¹  Syahir Habib¹  Anastasia Iruthayam¹  NurAdeela Yasid¹  Jerzy Smykla²  SitiAisyah Alias³ 

[1] Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400, Selangor, Malaysia;Institute of Nature Conservation, Polish Academy of Sciences, Mickiewicza, 33, 31-120 Kraków, Poland;Institute of Ocean and Earth Sciences, C308 Institute of Postgraduate Studies, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur 50603, Malaysia;

关键词: plastic pollution;    pristine fellfield soil;    polypropylene;    Pseudomonas sp.;    Rhodococcus sp.;   

DOI  :  10.3390/polym12112616

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

Microplastic pollution is globally recognised as a serious environmental threat due to its ubiquitous presence related primarily to improper dumping of plastic wastes. While most studies have focused on microplastic contamination in the marine ecosystem, microplastic pollution in the soil environment is generally little understood and often overlooked. The presence of microplastics affects the soil ecosystem by disrupting the soil fertility and quality, degrading the food web, and subsequently influencing both food security and human health. This study evaluates the growth and biodegradation potential of the Antarctic soil bacteria Pseudomonas sp. ADL15 and Rhodococcus sp. ADL36 on the polypropylene (PP) microplastics in Bushnell Haas (BH) medium for 40 days. The degradation was monitored based on the weight loss of PP microplastics, removal rate constant per day (K), and their half-life. The validity of the PP microplastics’ biodegradation was assessed through structural changes via Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy analyses. The weight loss percentage of the PP microplastics by ADL15 and ADL36 after 40 days was 17.3% and 7.3%, respectively. The optimal growth in the BH media infused with PP microplastics was on the 40th and 30th day for ADL15 and ADL36, respectively. The infrared spectroscopic analysis revealed significant changes in the PP microplastics’ functional groups following the incubation with Antarctic strains.

【 授权许可】

Unknown