Ecological effects of combined pollution associated with e-waste recycling on the composition and diversity of soil microbial communities.
The crude processing of electronic waste (e-waste) has led to serious contamination in soils. While microorganisms may play a key role in remediation of the contaminated soils, the ecological effects of combined pollution (heavy metals, polychlorinated biphenyls, and polybrominated diphenyl ethers) on the composition and diversity of microbial communities remain unknown. In this study, a suite of e-waste contaminated soils were collected from Guiyu, China, and the indigenous microbial assemblages were profiled by 16S rRNA high-throughput sequencing and clone library analysis. Our data revealed significant differences in microbial taxonomic composition between the contaminated and the reference soils, with Proteobacteria, Acidobacteria, Bacteroidetes, and Firmicutes dominating the e-waste-affected communities. Genera previously identified as organic pollutants-degrading bacteria, such as Acinetobacter, Pseudomonas, and Alcanivorax, were frequently detected. Canonical correspondence analysis revealed that approximately 70% of the observed variation in microbial assemblages in the contaminated soils was explained by eight environmental variables (including soil physiochemical parameters and organic pollutants) together, among which moisture content, decabromodiphenyl ether (BDE-209), and copper were the major factors. These results provide the first detailed phylogenetic look at the microbial communities in e-waste contaminated soils, demonstrating that the complex combined pollution resulting from improper e-waste recycling may significantly alter soil microbiota.
†State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Key Laboratory of Biodiversity Dynamics and Conservation of Guangdong Higher Education Institutes, College of Ecology and Evolution, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275, P. R. China.
Jun
J
Liu
†State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Key Laboratory of Biodiversity Dynamics and Conservation of Guangdong Higher Education Institutes, College of Ecology and Evolution, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275, P. R. China.
Xiao-Xin
XX
He
‡South China Institute of Environmental Sciences, Ministry of Environmental Protection, Guangzhou 510655, P. R. China.
Xue-Rui
XR
Lin
†State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Key Laboratory of Biodiversity Dynamics and Conservation of Guangdong Higher Education Institutes, College of Ecology and Evolution, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275, P. R. China.
Wen-Ce
WC
Chen
§Key Laboratory of Pollution Processes and Environmental Criteria (Ministry of Education), Tianjin Key Laboratory of Environmental Remediation and Pollution Control, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, P. R. China.
Qi-Xing
QX
Zhou
†State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Key Laboratory of Biodiversity Dynamics and Conservation of Guangdong Higher Education Institutes, College of Ecology and Evolution, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275, P. R. China.
Wen-Sheng
WS
Shu
†State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Key Laboratory of Biodiversity Dynamics and Conservation of Guangdong Higher Education Institutes, College of Ecology and Evolution, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275, P. R. China.
Li-Nan
LN
Huang
D001419:Bacteria / Q000145:classification / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics; D044822:Biodiversity; D002681:China; D003300:Copper / Q000032:analysis / Q000633:toxicity; D017753:Ecosystem; D059029:Electronic Waste / Q000032:analysis; D055768:Halogenated Diphenyl Ethers / Q000032:analysis / Q000633:toxicity; D019216:Metals, Heavy / Q000032:analysis / Q000633:toxicity; D059013:Microbial Consortia / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000235:genetics; D010802:Phylogeny; D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls / Q000032:analysis / Q000633:toxicity; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / Q000235:genetics; D059027:Recycling; D012987:Soil; D012988:Soil Microbiology; D012989:Soil Pollutants / Q000633:toxicity*
D055768:Halogenated Diphenyl Ethers; D019216:Metals, Heavy; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S; D012987:Soil; D012989:Soil Pollutants; D003300:Copper; D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls; C010902:decabromobiphenyl ether