As microplastic pollution intensifies, its impact on soil microbial communities has drawn widespread attention. This study treated soil samples with five microplastics, including polystyrene (PS), polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), and polyethylene terephthalate (PET), to assess effects on soil properties. High-throughput sequencing was used to analyze soil fungal community structure and functional diversity. Results showed that microplastic treatments significantly altered pH, total carbon (TC), ammonium nitrogen (NH4+-N), nitrate nitrogen (NO3−-N), and available phosphorus (AP). Notably, all treatments reduced NO3−-N levels. Fungal community composition was affected, particularly Mortierellomycota and the genera Mortierella, Plectosphaerella, Pseudogymnoascus, Penicillium, Tuber, and Stachybotrys. Functional analysis revealed decreases in certain groups, especially Endophyte–Plant Saprotroph–Undefined Saprotroph and Endophyte–Plant Pathogen–Plant Saprotroph, in PE, PS, and PVC treatments. Mantel analysis further indicated that soil pH, NH4+-N, and NO3−-N significantly influenced fungal communities. These results highlight that microplastic pollution alters soil properties, thereby affecting fungal communities in a microplastic-type dependent manner, providing a theoretical basis for soil health management and pollution mitigation.
Cui et al. (Mon,) studied this question.
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