Microplastic Pollution: Effects on Aquatic Biomarkers and Biodiversity

Dear Colleagues,

The 21st century has seen the realization that people have overused plastic. Unfortunately, microplastic pollution is a widespread environmental problem in many of the world’s rivers and seas. Plastic litter is well distributed in shallow as well as in deep-waters, and therefore it is inevitably present in the world’s ocean, which is in turn the final sink of plastic debris of all sizes, alongside other various anthropogenic toxicants (for example, heavy metals and persistent organic pollutants). The negative effects of microplastics on aquatic organisms, including both freshwater and marine fish, turtles, seabirds and mammals, due to plastic ingestion or entanglement, have been already recognized. Moreover, the ingestion of microplastics has become a commonly observed phenomenon, especially in the oceans, raising concern about the effects on aquatic ecosystems, including their biodiversity. Hence, research is urgently needed to investigate and document this impact, using biomarkers ranging from the cellular to the population or community level. 

We are pleased to invite you to this Special Issue of Applied Sciences on "Microplastic Pollution: Effects on Aquatic Biomarkers and Biodiversity”. This Special Issue aims to highlight current studies on the negative effects of microplastic on aquatic biomarkers and biodiversity, and further help to solve the problems that aquatic ecosystems are facing today.

Dr. Vesela Yancheva
Dr. Stela Stoyanova
Guest Editors

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• microplastics
• pollution
• aquatic ecosystems
• biomarkers
• biodiversity