Q2. What is the role of biofilms in the degradation of MPs?
The processes of ageing and weathering contributes to the degradation of MPs and is driven by biotic (e.g.; microbial colonisation) and abiotic (e.g.; photo-oxidation) factors acting on the particle surface, resulting in modified surface topography and changes to the surface chemistry.
Q3. How long did the plastics be deployed in an urban bay?
Plastics were deployed in an urban bay for 2 months to facilitate the sorption of PAHs from seawater at an environmentally relevant concentration and fed to amphipods, which were offered to the gobies.
Q4. What is the reason for the concern about microplastics?
Much of the concern surrounding microplastics is due to the chemical additives and sorbed contaminants having the capacity to desorb into an organism (Bakir et al., 2014).
Q5. What is the impact of microplastics on the ecosystem?
Microplastic accumulation in lower trophic levels could potentially lead to cascading effects in marine food webs (Frias et al., 2014).
Q6. What is the main source of microplastics in the marine environment?
Evidence suggests that microplastics mainly exist as fibres and fragments in the marine environment, indicating waste waters and textiles as the primary pathway and source (Thompson et al., 2004; Browne et al., 2011; Claessens et al., 2011).
Q7. What methods are used to study nanoplastics in the laboratory?
Several methods that apply to nanomaterials are applied to nanoplastics in the laboratory, such as UV-VIS spectrometry, electron microscopy, field flow fractionation (FFF) or dynamic light scattering (DLS) (von der Kammer et al., 2012).
Q8. How many marine species are encountered with plastic?
An estimated 8 million tonnes of plastic waste enters the ocean each year (Jambeck et al., 2015) and encounters with > 690 marine species have already been reported (Gall and Thompson,2015; Lavers and Bond, 2017).
Q9. What are the main types of MPs?
Microplastics occur in several forms; 1) primary MPs, plastic particles specifically manufactured for their abrasive qualities (e.g.; microbeads and industrial scrubbers), 2) secondary MPs originating from parent materials such as discarded plastic items and synthetic textiles and 3) tertiary MPs which includes any preproduction pellets used to mould plastic goods.
Q10. What are the effects of MP on an organisms daily functioning?
While the obvious physical impacts of ingestion include laceration, inflammation and in some cases starvation, the chemical effects of MP ingestion on an organisms daily functioning are less established.
Q11. How did the first study confirm the trophic transfer of plastics particles?
The first study to confirm the trophic transfer of plastics particles came about almost a decade after their discovery in sea lion scats.
Q12. What is the evidence for the trophic transfer of microplastics?
Evidence for the trophic transfer of microplastics comes from the quantification of MPs in field collected organisms, plastic particles identified in their natural predators and controlled feeding studies attemptingto mimic the transfer of microplastics through artificial food chains.
Q13. Why are organisms more likely to ingest microplastics than those from offshore habitats?
Organisms within coastal food webs are more likely to ingest microplastics than those from offshore habitats, due to greater inputs from the land (Browne et al., 2010).
Q14. What was the first attempt to demonstrate the transference of MPs through a multi-dimensional?
In a first attempt to demonstrate MP transference through a multi-dimensional food web, the brown mussel (Perna perna) was incubated with 0.1-1 μm PVC microspheres and offered to two secondary consumers; fish (Spheoeroides greeleyi) and crabs (Callinectes ornatus) (Santana et al., 2017).
Q15. What is the recent research on the effects of plastic particles on marine food chains?
The uptake of plastic particles by humans can occur through the consumption of terrestrial and aquatic food products, drinking water and inhalation (Vethaak and Leslie, 2016).
Q16. What are the practices to address the issue of microplastics in the marine environment?
Recommended actions to address the issue of microplastics include;• Standardisation of sampling protocols, particle characterisation and analytical methods • Comprehensive assessment of microplastic distribution and abundance in the variousmarine compartments, particularly for the southern hemisphere • Comprehensive assessment of microplastics in organisms collected from the marineenvironment •
Q17. What is the recent research on plastics?
Microplastic (MP) research has received increasing attention over the past decade, following an increase in production and subsequent introduction of plastic to the marine environment.
Q18. What was the effect of the polystyrene nanoparticles on the feeding?
Polystyrene nanoparticles (24 nm) were fed through a freshwater food chain from algae (Scenedesmus sp.) to zooplankton (Daphnia magna) to goldfish (Carassius carassius), with noticeable effects on the feeding behaviour of C. carassius exposed to MPs (Cedervall et al., 2012).
Q19. What is the way to assess the fate of microplastics in the environment?
In-vitro studies to determine the fate and behaviour of microplastics, their endogenous additives and sorbed contaminants in the human GIT • New approaches and methods to detect and quantify nanoplastics in the environment, thereby generating a better understanding of the ecological and human health impacts, as well as the final fate of minute plastic particlesDeclaration of interest None.