Microplastics as an aquatic pollutant affect gut microbiota within aquatic animals

The adverse impact of microplastics (MPs) on gut microbiota within aquatic animals depends on the overall effect of chemicals and biofilm of MPs. Thus, it is ideal to fully understand the influences that arise from each or even all of these characteristics, which should give us a whole picture of consequences that are brought by MPs. Harmful effects of MPs on gut microbiota within aquatic organisms start from the ingestion of MPs by aquatic organisms. According to this, the present review will discuss the ingestion of MPs and its following results on gut microbial communities within aquatic animals, in which chemical components, such as plastic polymers, heavy metals and POPs, and the biofilm of MPs would be involved. This review firstly analyzed the impacts of MPs on aquatic organisms in detail about its chemical components and biofilm based on previous relevant studies. At last, the significance of field studies, functional studies and complex dynamics of gut microbial ecology in the future research of MPs affecting gut microbiota is discussed. [Display omitted] •The explained MPs-gut-microbiota relationship supports the further understanding of the effects of MPs on gut microbiota.•The chemical components of MPs can affect the gut microbiota.•Biofilms can form and develop on MPs and may interact with gut microbiota and the host.•The structure, function, and ecological dynamics matter to gut microbial communities.•Gut microbiota, responding towards MPs, is a multifarious system with multiple gears whose mechanisms require further study.