Key Laboratory of Biodiversity Dynamics and Conservation of Guangdong Higher Education Institutes, College of Ecology and Evolution, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275, PR China.
South China Institute of Environmental Sciences, Ministry of Environmental Protection, Guangzhou 510655, PR China.
Environ Pollut. 2018 Apr;235:171-179. doi: 10.1016/j.envpol.2017.12.008. Epub 2017 Dec 27.
The release of toxic organic pollutants and heavy metals by primitive electronic waste (e-waste) processing to waterways has raised significant concerns, but little is known about their potential ecological effects on aquatic biota especially microorganisms. We characterized the microbial community composition and diversity in sediments sampled along two rivers consistently polluted by e-waste, and explored how community functions may respond to the complex combined pollution. High-throughput 16S rRNA gene sequencing showed that Proteobacteria (particularly Deltaproteobacteria) dominated the sediment microbial assemblages followed by Bacteroidetes, Acidobacteria, Chloroflexi and Firmicutes. PICRUSt metagenome inference provided an initial insight into the metabolic potentials of these e-waste affected communities, speculating that organic pollutants degradation in the sediment might be mainly performed by some of the dominant genera (such as Sulfuricurvum, Thiobacillus and Burkholderia) detected in situ. Statistical analyses revealed that toxic organic compounds contributed more to the observed variations in sediment microbial community structure and predicted functions (24.68% and 8.89%, respectively) than heavy metals (12.18% and 4.68%), and Benzo(a)pyrene, bioavailable lead and electrical conductivity were the key contributors. These results have shed light on the microbial assemblages in e-waste contaminated river sediments, indicating a potential influence of e-waste pollution on the microbial community structure and function in aquatic ecosystems.
原始电子废物（电子垃圾）处理向水道中释放有毒有机污染物和重金属，引起了人们的极大关注，但对于它们对水生生物，特别是微生物的潜在生态影响却知之甚少。我们描述了两条持续受到电子垃圾污染的河流沉积物中的微生物群落组成和多样性，并探讨了群落功能可能如何对复杂的复合污染做出响应。高通量 16S rRNA 基因测序表明，变形菌门（特别是δ变形菌门）是沉积物微生物群的主要组成部分，其次是拟杆菌门、酸杆菌门、绿弯菌门和厚壁菌门。PICRUSt 宏基因组推断提供了对这些受电子垃圾影响的群落代谢潜力的初步了解，推测沉积物中有机污染物的降解可能主要由原位检测到的一些优势属（如硫弯曲杆菌、硫杆菌和伯克霍尔德菌）完成。统计分析表明，有毒有机化合物对沉积物微生物群落结构和预测功能的变化的贡献（分别为 24.68%和 8.89%）大于重金属（分别为 12.18%和 4.68%），而苯并（a）芘、生物可利用铅和电导率是关键贡献者。这些结果揭示了电子垃圾污染河流沉积物中的微生物组合，表明电子垃圾污染对水生生态系统中微生物群落结构和功能的潜在影响。
