Affiliations 

  • 1 Department of Soil Science, Patuakhali Science and Technology University, Dumki, Patuakhali, 8602, Bangladesh
  • 2 Department of Disaster Management, Begum Rokeya University, Rangpur, 5400, Bangladesh
  • 3 Centre for River and Coastal Engineering (CRCE), Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), 81310, Johor Bahru, Malaysia
  • 4 International Centre for Ocean Governance (ICOG), Faculty of Earth & Environmental Sciences, University of Dhaka, Dhaka, 1000, Bangladesh
  • 5 Department of Aquaculture, Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University, Dhaka, 1207, Bangladesh
  • 6 Department of Environmental Science and Resource Management, Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University, Tangail, Bangladesh
  • 7 Department of Biology, College of Science, King Khalid University, Abha, 62529, Saudi Arabia
  • 8 Department of Biology, College of Science, King Khalid University, Abha, Saudi Arabia
  • 9 Department of Chemistry, College of Science, King Khalid University, Abha, 62529, Saudi Arabia
Heliyon, 2023 Nov;9(11):e22692.
PMID: 38074858 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e22692

Abstract

In the modern world, plastic trash has been recognized as a global issue, and studies on microplastics (MPs) in the marine and inland environments have previously been conducted. Marine ecosystems act as a bio-diverse ecosystem where coral reefs contribute to make a sound living of the coastal people by gathering natural resources. The current study indicates that MPs and heavy metals (HMs) accumulation to biofilm and organic matter through sedimentation, precipitation, adsorption, and desorption that may have potential effect on growth and development of coral reefs in the marine ecosystems. However, the knowledge of distribution, impact, mechanism, degradation, and association mechanisms between MPs and HMs in the natural environment may open a new window for conducting analytical research from an ecological viewpoint. The current study thus summarizes the types of marine samples with the analytical techniques, polymers of MPs, and their impact on corals and other marine biota. This study also identifies existing knowledge gaps and recommends fresh lines of inquiry in light of recent developments in MPs and HMs research on the marine ecosystems. Overall, the present study suggests a sustainable intervention for reducing MPs and HMs from the marine ecosystems by demonstrating their existence in water, sediment, fish, corals, and other biota, and their impending ecotoxicological impacts on the environment and human health. The impacts of MPs and HMs on coral reefs are critically assessed in this study in light of the most recent scientific knowledge, existing laws, and new suggestions to minimize their contamination in the marine ecosystems.

* Title and MeSH Headings from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.