marine-ecology
Marine ecology examines how organisms interact with each other and their environment within ocean ecosystems, encompassing everything from microscopic phytoplankton to vast kelp forests and seagrass meadows. For plant science, this field is essential to understanding marine primary producers like algae and seagrasses, which drive oceanic carbon cycling, generate a significant share of the planet's oxygen, and form the foundation of marine food webs. Studying these aquatic plant communities also reveals unique evolutionary adaptations to saline, light-limited, and dynamic underwater environments that differ markedly from terrestrial plant biology.
open_in_new WikipediaPubMed · 2026-07-14
Scientists reviewed how ocean-dwelling bacteria and fungi break down plastic waste and oil pollution using specialized enzymes, and how new genetic tools are helping researchers find and improve these pollution-eating microbes faster.
Marine microbes use enzymes like PETase and MHETase to break down microplastics, and laccases and peroxidases to degrade hydrocarbons including PAHs and BTEX compounds.
Microplastics act as rafts for oil and other pollutants, creating microbial biofilm communities called the plastisphere.
Degradation happens in stages: surface colonization, enzymatic breakdown, fragmentation, and finally full assimilation and mineralization by the microbes.