Distinctive patterns of bacterial community succession in the riverine micro-plastisphere in view of biofilm development and ecological niches

Abstract

Exploring plastic bacterial community succession is a crucial step in analyzing and predicting the ecological assembly processes of the plastisphere and its associated environmental impacts. However, microbial biofilm development and niche differentiation during plastic bacterial community succession have rarely scarcely considered. Here, we assessed the differences between three microplastics (MPs) and two natural polymers in terms of biofilm development and niche properties during bacterial community succession, and identified a genus of MPs-degrading bacteria with strong competitive potential in the plastisphere. MPs biofilm development exhibits secondary succession characteristics, whereas natural polymer biofilms persist during the primary succession stage. During succession in plastic bacterial communities, the relationship between nutrient resources and microbial competition was reflected in a positive correlation between species competition and niche breadth, which contradicted the common belief that increased nutrient availability leads to reduced competition. Furthermore, the co-occurrence network revealed that specialists were species with greater competitive potential within the plastisphere. Additionally, the MPs-degrading Exiguobacterium genus represented a key taxon in the plastisphere. Our study provides a reliable pathway for revealing the specificity of plastic bacterial community succession from multiple perspectives and enhances the understanding of ecological assembly processes in the plastisphere.