Authors
Ting-Ting Xu, Zhen-Liang Li, Zhi-Yan Wang, Yu-Han Xie, Heng-Xiang Li, Xiang-Rong Xu
Published in
Journal of hazardous materials. Volume 515. Pages 143097. Jul 25, 2026. Epub Jul 25, 2026.
Abstract
Microalgae play a crucial role in maintaining marine ecosystem balance, yet they are generally more sensitive to global changes and pollutants. In this study, we assessed the effects of heat stress (elevated 4°C) and aminated polystyrene particles (PS-NH2) of different sizes (50 nm, 1 μm, and 10 μm) on the growth of microalgae Skeletonema costatum (S. costatum). Results showed that elevated temperature mitigated the growth inhibition of S. costatum induced by PS-NH2 particles across all sizes, but could not fully counteract their adverse effects. Transcriptome analysis revealed that S. costatum enhanced energy metabolism under both ambient and elevated temperatures to cope with microplastics (1 μm and 10 μm). However, the concurrent suppression of chlorophyll a synthesis and fatty acid degradation created an energy‑limiting condition that constrained growth. Notably, ribosome biogenesis was up-regulated only under exposed to larger microplastics (10 μm) at both temperature conditions, suggesting a size‑dependent capacity to sustain protein synthesis and proliferation. Under heat stress, both 1 μm and 10 μm microplastics up‑regulated the TCA cycle, thereby alleviating growth inhibition. This study provides new insights into how the biological effects of microplastics on microalgae are modulated by particle sizes and temperatures. It highlights the need for further research on the long-term effects of microplastics particles using environmentally relevant concentrations and heat stress, in order to better predict their enduring impacts on microalgae under ongoing climate change.
PMID:
42508073
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 28 Jul 2026.
Read full publication at:
Please sign in
to see all details.
Advertisement
Stats
- Recommendations n/a n/a positive of 0 vote(s)
- Views 4
- Comments 0