Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42555106›Full record

ArticleThe ISME journal2026

Zoo gut plastispheres enable pathogen escape and adaptation.

Zipei Luo, Yilun Liu, Haimei Wu, Yunmu Xiao, Yong Li, Meizhi Liu, Changchao Li, Dong Zhu, Ling N Jin, Tao Dong and 1 more

Abstract read
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In one paragraph

Article in The ISME journal, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

Zipei LuoNational Engineering Laboratory of Applied Technology for Forestry & Ecology in South China, and Laboratory of Urban Forest Ecology of Hunan Province; Department of Ecology and Environment, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha, Hunan Province 410004, China.
Yilun LiuNational Engineering Laboratory of Applied Technology for Forestry & Ecology in South China, and Laboratory of Urban Forest Ecology of Hunan Province; Department of Ecology and Environment, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha, Hunan Province 410004, China.
Haimei WuNational Engineering Laboratory of Applied Technology for Forestry & Ecology in South China, and Laboratory of Urban Forest Ecology of Hunan Province; Department of Ecology and Environment, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha, Hunan Province 410004, China.
Yunmu XiaoNational Engineering Laboratory of Applied Technology for Forestry & Ecology in South China, and Laboratory of Urban Forest Ecology of Hunan Province; Department of Ecology and Environment, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha, Hunan Province 410004, China.
Yong LiNational Engineering Laboratory of Applied Technology for Forestry & Ecology in South China, and Laboratory of Urban Forest Ecology of Hunan Province; Department of Ecology and Environment, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha, Hunan Province 410004, China.ORCID 0000-0002-7719-7580
Meizhi LiuNational Engineering Laboratory of Applied Technology for Forestry & Ecology in South China, and Laboratory of Urban Forest Ecology of Hunan Province; Department of Ecology and Environment, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha, Hunan Province 410004, China.
Changchao LiDepartment of Civil and Environmental Engineering, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Kowloon, Hong Kong 999077, China.ORCID 0000-0002-3943-6413
Dong ZhuState Key Laboratory of Regional and Urban Ecology, Ningbo Observation and Research Station, Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xiamen 361021, China.ORCID 0000-0002-0826-6423
Ling N JinDepartment of Civil and Environmental Engineering, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Kowloon, Hong Kong 999077, China.ORCID 0000-0003-1267-7396
Tao DongDepartment of Immunology and Microbiology, School of Life Sciences, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen 518055, China.ORCID 0000-0003-3557-1850
Wende YanNational Engineering Laboratory of Applied Technology for Forestry & Ecology in South China, and Laboratory of Urban Forest Ecology of Hunan Province; Department of Ecology and Environment, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha, Hunan Province 410004, China.

Funding

National Natural Science Foundation of China 2023JJ30986National Natural Science Foundation of China 2024JJ1016National Natural Science Foundation of China 22188102National Natural Science Foundation of China 22425041Postdoctoral Science Foundation GZC20242059Science and Technology Innovation Program of Hunan Province 2022RC1118Scientific Research Project of Hunan Provincial Department of Education P0040336Scientific Research Project of Hunan Provincial Department of Education XLKJ202303
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

In zoos, intensive human contact and artificial feeding may create pathways for microplastic (MP) ingestion and gut colonization. We hypothesized that ingested MPs form intestinal plastispheres with elevated pathogenic potential and enhanced environmental persistence. To test this, we surveyed feces from 15 zoo-dwelling species and coupled particle characterization, feces-derived intestinal simulations, metagenomic sequencing, and a subsequent water-exposure experiment. Zoo feces contained more abundant MPs than reported for wild counterparts, with fragments predominating and polyethylene terephthalate (PET)/polystyrene (PS) dominating polymer profiles. MP burdens tracked human-animal interaction patterns, with human-fed species (e.g. Tiger, Elephant) carrying the highest loads (88-212 items/g). MPs supported dense biofilms whose composition diverged from bulk gut communities, exhibiting greater compositional variability and substrate-specific assembly. Metagenomic analyses revealed coordinated enrichment of potentially pathogenic taxa, virulence factor genes (VFGs), and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), with ARG profiles dominated by efflux- and inactivation-related mechanisms and tightly associated with mobile genetic elements. Elevated Type II/III/IV/VI secretion systems and effector delivery-related VFGs occurred within extracellular polymeric substance-rich biofilms, suggesting enhanced potential for ARG retention and horizontal gene transfer. During the 35-day aquatic exposure, MP-associated communities persisted longer than non-plastic particle-associated communities and free gut microbiota, suggesting that plastic-specific properties promote microbial persistence. PET/PS plastispheres showed the slowest declines in bacterial activity and favored the persistence of Enterococcus, Enterobacter, and Clostridium. Overall, intestinal MPs in zoo animals may select, enrich, and export high-risk microbiomes, highlighting the need for MP mitigation and evidence-based management of zoos and adjacent ecosystems.

Indexed as

Animals, ZooBacteriaGastrointestinal MicrobiomeMicroplasticsAdaptation, PhysiologicalAnimalsBiofilmsFecesHumansMetagenomicsMicroplasticsantibiotic resistance genes (ARGs)pathogen adaptationplastispherezoo gut microbiome

Identifiers

PMID42555106
PMCPMC13590889

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.