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Updated: May 12, 2026

Characterization of Aquatic Biofilms with Flow Cytometry
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Pollutant biodegradation profile mediated by multi-trophic microbial dynamics in rivers.

Joeselle M Serrana1,2, Run Tian2,3, Francisco J A Nascimento1,4,5

  • 1Stockholm University Center for Circular and Sustainable Systems (SUCCeSS), Stockholm University, Stockholm 106 91, Sweden.

ISME Communications
|May 11, 2026
PubMed
Summary

Microbial communities in rivers drive pollutant biodegradation, with their structure influenced by seasons and location. Multi-trophic interactions significantly mediate how environmental factors affect this crucial ecosystem function.

Keywords:
biodegradationenvironmental microbiomemediation analysismicrobial eukaryotesorganic pollutantsprokaryotesspatiotemporal dynamics

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Area of Science:

  • Environmental microbiology
  • Ecosystem ecology
  • Bioremediation

Background:

  • Microbial communities and environmental conditions are vital for aquatic ecosystem functions, particularly pollutant biodegradation.
  • The influence of multi-trophic interactions and their spatiotemporal dynamics on these processes is not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate how seasonal and spatial variations, influenced by trophic interactions in benthic microbial communities, affect community composition, functional capacity, and pollutant degradation potential in rivers.
  • To explore the links between community composition and the biodegradation of organic pollutants across seasons in wastewater-receiving rivers.

Main Methods:

  • Characterized prokaryotic (archaea, bacteria) and eukaryotic taxa (algae, fungi, protists, metazoans).
  • Inferred metabolic pathways to assess functional capacity.
  • Employed mediation analysis to quantify the influence of community structure on pollutant biodegradation.

Main Results:

  • Multi-trophic community structure significantly mediates the impact of environmental factors on the biodegradation of 96 organic pollutants.
  • Prokaryotic communities explained 60% of the total environmental influence on biodegradation.
  • Eukaryotic groups (fungi, protists, algae, metazoans) also showed significant indirect mediation effects (56%, 53%, 26%, 38%, respectively).
  • Spatial variation accounted for more community composition variance than seasonality.

Conclusions:

  • Ecosystem-level insights into the association between multi-trophic microbial community organization and pollutant biodegradation potential in dynamic river environments.
  • Findings support the development of predictive frameworks for sustainable water management and bioremediation strategies.