Press Release: Ecosystems at risk in Antarctica due to microplastics
Evidence is given by a recent study on small invertebrates in the South Pole
"There is evidence and serious concern that microplastics have reached the most remote regions of the planet”. This is the incipit of the article recently published on the scientific journal Royal Society Biology Letters by an Italian research team led by Elisa Bergami and Ilaria Corsi, which has provided the first field-based evidence of contamination by microplastics in Antarctic terrestrial animals. |
Bergami et al.2020 Graphical abstract web |
Previous laboratory studies on other species of the Collembola group living in other areas of the globe also suggest that the exposure to microplastics can cause alterations in their growth and reproduction.
Given the large presence of Cryptopygus antarcticus in the Antarctic terrestrial environment, the ingestion of microplastics could contribute to their spread along the food chain in the South Pole, with potential risks for the entire ecosystem. Further studies are needed to better understand the possible environmental consequences due to the presence of microplastics, which have already deeply penetrated the soil and food webs. The study was coordinated by Elisa Bergami and Ilaria Corsi from the University of Siena, with the precious support of Emilia Rota from the same department, Giovanni Birarda and Lisa Vaccari from Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste and Tancredi Caruso from the University College Dublin. |
The research was conducted in the framework of projects funded by the Italian national Antarctic research program (PNRA), with the support of the Brazilian Antarctic program (PROANTAR) and the Cilean Antarctic institute (INACH). Researchers also benefited from free access to the advanced instrumentation at the synchrotron in Trieste, thanks to one of the calls of the Central European Research Infrastructure Consortium, CERIC-ERIC. CERIC-ERIC is a multidisciplinary Research Infrastructure open for users in the fields of Materials, Biomaterials and Nanotechnology. With a single entry point to excellent facilities in Europe, it allows structural investigation, analysis and synthesis of materials, using photon, electron, neutron, and ion based techniques. Original Article: The Royal Society publishing DOI: https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2020.0093 Press Release |
Antarctic collembolan analysed by microFTIR (credits Giovanni Birarda) |
Press Review
- nature.com, dd 23.06.2020: "Plastic fouls an Antarctic island’s wee beasts"
- cnn.com, dd 24.06.2020: "Microplastics found in gut of animal on one of the most remote islands of the world"
- tuoitre.vn, dd 24.06.2020: "Tìm thấy hạt vi nhựa trong ruột sinh vật ở Nam Cực"
- scimex.org, dd 24.06.2020: "Plastics infiltrate Antarctic food webs"
- gonews.it, dd 24.06.2020: "Microplastiche in Antartide, ecosistemi a rischio"
- ilcittadinoonline.it, dd 24.06.2020: "Ecosistemi a rischio in Antartide a causa delle microplastiche"
- lescienze.it, dd 24.06.2020: "Ecosistemi a rischio in Antartide a causa delle microplastiche"
- journal.md, dd 24.06.2020: "Particulele de microplastic descoperite in corpul unui animal din Antarctica stârnesc îngrijorarea cercetătorilor"
- lswn.it, dd 24.06.2020: "Ecosistemi a rischio in Antartide a causa delle microplastiche"
- greenstyle.it, dd 24.06.2020: "Microplastica nello stomaco di un animale raro in Antartide"
- siciliareport.it, dd 25.06.2020: "Ambiente: studio, ecosistemi a rischio in Antartide, colpa delle microplastiche"
- scienzafanpage.it, dd 25.06.2020: "Le microplastiche sono entrate (anche) nella catena alimentare dell’Antartide: le prime prove"
- lanazione.it, dd 25.06.2020: "C’è plastica in Antartide Lo studio dell’ateneo"
- quotidianodiragusa.it, dd 25.06.2020: "Ecosistemi a rischio in Antartide, colpa delle microplastiche"
- toscanachiantiambiente.it, dd 27.06.2020: "Ateneo di Siena: microplastiche persino negli animali terrestri antartici"
- RAITRE Friuli VG, dd 29.06.2020:"Le microplastiche in Antartide"
- rainews.it, dd 30.06.2020: "La plastica ovunque"
- oggiscienza.it dd 10/04/2020: 'Le microplastiche arrivano in Antartide'