The dangerous transporters : A study of microplastic-associated bacteria passing through municipal wastewater treatment

Microplastics (MPs) provide a stable and protective habitat for diverse wastewater bacteria, including pathogenic and antibiotic-resistant species. Therefore, MPs may potentially transport these bacteria through wastewater treatment steps to the environment and far distances. This study investigated bacterial communities of MP-associated bacteria from different stages of municipal wastewater treatment processes to evaluate the potential negative effect of these biofilms on the environment. The results showed a high diversity of bacteria that were strongly attached to MPs. After all treatment steps, the core bacterial groups remained attached to MPs and escaped from the wastewater treatment plant with effluent water. Several pathogenic bacteria were identified in MP samples from all treatment steps, and most of them were found in effluent water. These data provide new insights into the possible impacts of wastewater-derived MPs on the environment. MP-associated biofilms were proved to be important sources of pathogens and antibiotic-resistant genes in natural waters.

Description

Funding Information: The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: Antonina Kruglova reports financial support was provided by Finnish Water Utilities Association . Publisher Copyright: © 2022 The Authors

Keywords

Activated sludge, Microplastic biofilms, Microplastics, Plastisphere, Wastewater treatment, Wastewater-derived pathogens

DOI

10.1016/j.envpol.2022.120316

Citation

Kruglova , A , Muñoz-Palazón , B , Gonzalez-Martinez , A , Mikola , A , Vahala , R & Talvitie , J 2022 , ' The dangerous transporters : A study of microplastic-associated bacteria passing through municipal wastewater treatment ' , Environmental Pollution , vol. 314 , 120316 . https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2022.120316

Permanent link to this item

https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:aalto-202210196097

Collections

[article-cris] Insinööritieteiden korkeakoulu / ENG

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