Bioplastic microparticles exposure on brine shrimp, Artemia franciscana and the effects on survival, growth and intestinal microbiota composition

Bioplastics are considered a greener alternative to conventional plastics and mitigate environmental pollution caused by mismanaged plastic waste. Although there is a tendency toward greater use of bioplastics, the extent to which they may accumulate in marine environments and organisms, and their potential impact remains unknown. Therefore, this study assessed the induced accumulation of irregular and non-homogenous bioplastic microparticles (polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA), polylactic acid (PLA), and polybutylene succinate (PBS)) in brine shrimp (Artemia franciscana) at two concentrations (0.2 and 2.0 mg/L) and temperatures (26 °C and 30 °C) for 14 days. Overall, exposure to different types of bioplastics did not significantly impact the growth and survival of Artemia but was significantly affected by temperature and concentration. The growth of Artemia was significantly decreased at 30 °C compared to 26 °C. Meanwhile, the survival showed a significant difference between the concentrations of bioplastics exposure showing a higher survival percentage at 0.2 mg/L. Bacterial 16S rRNA gene sequencing revealed that the dominance of phyla of gut microbiota across all samples and time points were Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria, and Cyanobacteria. The α-diversity across the treatments indicates the gut microbial composition underwent microbial shifts over time and might be influenced by bioplastic microparticles. This study suggests that there may be a combined adverse impact of bioplastic microparticles and temperature that can be seen in the growth, survival, and gut microbiota modulation. This study provides a preliminary understanding of the effect of bioplastic microparticles combined with temperature on marine organisms that shows a different perspective of bioplastics.