Project description:Microplastics are a relatively newly discovered environmental hazard that can contribute to the disruption of many physiological processes in the organism. There is evidence that they affect the physiology of the pancreas, but research is still very limited. Therefore, the aim of the study was to determine the effects of PET microplastics on the global proteomic profile of the porcine pancreas using LC-MS/MS analysis. The pigs were treated with a low (0.1 g/day) or a high dose (1 g/day) of PET microplastics for 4 weeks. The analysis revealed that PET microplastics affected protein expression in a dose-dependent manner - the low dose affected the abundance of 7 proteins, while the high dose of 17.
Project description:Plants from the Nepenthes genus, which enumerates approximately 120 species, possess specialized pitchers enabling them to capture and digest various preys, mainly arthropods, from which the plants derive nutrients. The pitcher fluid contains many molecules of noteworthy importance, including antimicrobial compounds, traditionally used in medicine, as well as hydrolytic enzymes for prey digestion. In this study, polyesters films made from poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) and from poly(butylene adipate -co- terephthalate) (PBAT) were incubated in the pitcher of the carnivorous plants Nepenthes alata and Sarracenia purpurea. High performance liquid chromatography analysis revealed hydrolysis into their corresponding monomers, while hydrolysis efficiency was up to ten times higher in the presence of dried mealworm Tenebrio molitor and jasmonic acid. Proteomic analysis indicated the presence of the aspartic proteinase nepenthesin in most conditions, with high abundance in 70% of polyester-containing conditions compared to those without polyesters. Molecular docking simulations further suggested that nepenthesin has the potential to hydrolyze polyesters. While in contrast to cutinases there is only little information on hydrolysis of PET and PBAT by proteases in the literature, this work clearly demonstrates hydrolysis of both PET and PBAT by the recombinant protease nepenthesin, releasing similar amounts of TPA as the cutinase from Humicola insolens. These results suggest carnivorous plant fluids as a source for new enzymes for industrial applications such as for polyester hydrolysis.
Project description:<p>The increasing application of biodegradable mulch films in agriculture has raised concerns regarding the potential persistence of biodegradable microplastics (BMPs) in soil and their subsequent ecological impacts. Although these materials are designed to mineralize, their actual rates of breakdown under field conditions vary widely, and the role of plant roots in modulating BMP transformation through the rhizosphere effect remains poorly understood. In particular, how the complex biochemical environment of the rhizosphere influences BMP degradation and byproduct accumulation represents a critical knowledge gap. Here we show that the soybean rhizosphere significantly enhances the degradation of 1% (w/w) large (998.7 ± 74.6 μm) poly(butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) microplastics (PBAT-MPs), whereas small (145.6 ± 3.1 μm) particles remain largely protected within soil aggregates over a 70-day growth cycle. This size-dependent effect is accompanied by preferential hydrolysis of aliphatic adipate units, leading to greater accumulation of degradation monomers in the rhizosphere than in bulk soil. We further demonstrate that PBAT degradation is associated with increased microbial biomass, altered soil carbon pools, and the enrichment of Proteobacteria, particularly Bradyrhizobium and Ramlibacter, which are linked to PBAT hydrolysis and metabolite utilization. These findings redefine the role of plant roots in regulating the fate of biodegradable microplastics in soil and highlight that biodegradable mulches cannot be assumed to degrade benignly under realistic agricultural conditions. Our work underscores the need for rhizosphere relevant criteria when assessing the environmental safety of biodegradable plastics.</p>
Project description:Escaped domesticated individuals can introduce disadvantageous traits into wild populations due to both adaptive differences between population ancestors and human-induced changes during domestication. In contrast to their domesticated counterparts, some endangered wild Atlantic salmon populations encounter during their marine stage large amounts of suspended sediments, which may act as a selective agent. We used microarrays to elucidate quantitative transcriptional differences between a domesticated salmon strain, a wild population and their first-generation hybrids during their marine life stage, to describe transcriptional responses to natural suspended sediments, and to test for adaptive genetic variation in plasticity relating to a history of natural exposure or nonexposure to suspended sediments. We identified 67 genes differing in transcription level among salmon groups. Among these genes, processes related to energy metabolism and ion homoeostasis were over-represented, while genes contributing to immunity and actin-/myosin-related processes were also involved in strain differentiation. Domestic–wild hybrids exhibited intermediate transcription patterns relative to their parents for two-thirds of all genes that differed between their parents; however, genes deviating from additivity tended to have similar levels to those expressed by the wild parent. Sediments induced increases in transcription levels of eight genes, some of which are known to contribute to external or intracellular damage mitigation. Although genetic variation in plasticity did not differ significantly between groups after correcting for multiple comparisons, two genes (metallothionein and glutathione reductase) tended to be more plastic in response to suspended sediments in wild and hybrid salmon, and merit further examination as candidate genes under natural selection.
Project description:Chemical analysis of the compounds present in sediment, although informative, often is not indicative of the downstream biological effects that these contaminants exert on resident aquatic organisms. More direct molecular methods are needed to determine if marine life is affected by exposure to sediments. In this study, we used an aquatic multispecies microarray and q-PCR to investigate the effects on gene expression in juvenile sea bream (Sparus aurata) of two contaminated sediments defined as sediment 1 and 2 respectively, from marine areas in Northern Italy.
Project description:The contamination of marine ecosystems with microplastics, such as the polymer polyethylene, a commonly used component of single-use packaging, is of global concern. Although it has been suggested that biodegradable polymers, such as polylactic acid, may be used to replace some polyethylene packaging, little is known about their effects on marine organisms. Blue mussels, Mytilus edulis, have become a “model organism” for investigating the effects of microplastics in marine ecosystems. We show here that repeated exposure, over a period of 52 days in an outdoor mesocosm setting, of M. edulis to polyethylene microplastics reduced the number of byssal threads produced and the attachment strength (tenacity) by ~50%. Exposure to either type of microplastic altered the haemolymph proteome and, although a conserved response to microplastic exposure was observed, overall polyethylene resulted in more changes to protein abundances than polylactic acid. Many of the proteins affected are involved in vital biological processes, such as immune- and stress- regulation, metabolism and cellular and structural development. Our study highlights the utility of mass spectrometry-based proteomics to assess the health of key marine organisms and identifies the potential mechanisms by which microplastics, both conventional and biodegradable, could affect their ability to form and maintain reefs.
Project description:Marine sediments harbor highly diverse microbial communities that contribute to global biodiversity and play essential roles in the ecosystem functioning. However, the metaproteome of marine sediments remains poorly understood. Extracting proteins from environmental samples can be challenging, especially in marine sediments due to their complex matrix. Few studies have been conducted on improving protein extraction methods from marine sediments. To establish an effective protein extraction workflow for clay-rich sediments, we compared, combined and improved several protein extraction methods. The presented workflow includes blocking of protein binding sites on sediment particles with high concentrations of amino acids, effective cell lysis via ultra-sonication, and the electro-elution and simultaneous fractionation of proteins. Using this workflow, we were able to recover 100% of the previously added Escherichia coli proteins from the sediment.
2025-05-12 | PXD054260 | Pride
Project description:Different environments as a source of microbiome supporting degradation of microplastics: PP, PVC, PLA and PC_landfill soil