Microplastics as a New Ecological Niche For Multispecies Microbial Biofilms within the Plastisphere

Abstract

The distribution, colonization, and biodegradation of primary and secondary microplastics, as well as were effect on the plastisphere ecological systems, are analyzed. The pathways of microplastic contamination of the atmosphere, hydrosphere, and lithosphere are described. The composition of multispecies communities colonizing the microplastics and their differences from environmental communities unassociated with plastic within the same habitat are considered. The processes of microplastic biodegradation and their role as vectors for transfer of genetic information affecting the structure of natural microbial communities and for the propagation of toxic components are discussed.