All nanoplastics articles
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NewsNanoplastics can reduce the effectiveness of antibiotics
A study showed that plastic particles not only impair the effect of antibiotics, but could also promote the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
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NewsWastewater bacteria can break down plastic for food
Researchers have discovered how cells of a Comamonas bacterium break down plastic for food. First, they chew the plastic into small pieces, then secrete an enzyme that breaks down the plastic further, and finally use a ring of carbon atoms as a food source.
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NewsGrazing zooplankton severely impacted by nanoplastic particles - but cyanobacteria unaffected
Researchers who studied how nanoplastic affects aquatic organisms in lakes and rivers found that some species are being wiped out, while others – such as cyanobacteria that contribute to algal blooms – are completely unaffected.
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FeaturesUnder the microscope: microplastics
Examining the issue of plastic pollution with a round-up of microbial advances from the last few years.
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NewsResearchers uncover how tiny plastics threaten our soil and health
A new study has found that both nanoplastics and microplastics alter soil microbes and increase antibiotic resistance. Nanoplastics, due to their small size and large surface area, had a more significant impact, even in small quantities.
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NewsZooplankton in ocean and freshwater rapidly escalating the global threat of plastics
Rotifers, a kind of microscopic zooplankton, are able to chew apart microplastics, breaking them down into even smaller, and potentially more dangerous, nanoplastics. Each rotifer can create between 348,000 and 366,000 per day.
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NewsSoil microplastics could usher superbugs into food supply
Micro- and nanoplastics in agricultural soil could contribute to antibiotic resistant bacteria with a ready route into our food supply, a new study warns.
