Biofilm and Diatom Succession on Polyethylene (PE) and Biodegradable Plastic Bags in Two Marine Habitats: Early Signs of Degradation in the Pelagic and Benthic Zone?

Andreas Eich; Tobias Mildenberger; Christian Laforsch; Miriam Weber

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0137201

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Peer-reviewed

Research Article

Biofilm and Diatom Succession on Polyethylene (PE) and Biodegradable Plastic Bags in Two Marine Habitats: Early Signs of Degradation in the Pelagic and Benthic Zone?

Andreas Eich ,

Contributed equally to this work with: Andreas Eich, Tobias Mildenberger

Affiliation Biology/Chemistry Department, University of Bremen, Bibliothekstraße 1, 28359 Bremen, Germany
⨯
Tobias Mildenberger ,

Contributed equally to this work with: Andreas Eich, Tobias Mildenberger

Affiliation Biology/Chemistry Department, University of Bremen, Bibliothekstraße 1, 28359 Bremen, Germany
⨯
Christian Laforsch,

Affiliation Animal Ecology I, University of Bayreuth and BayCEER, Universitaetsstraße 30, 95447 Bayreuth, Germany
⨯
Miriam Weber

* E-mail: m.weber@hydra-institute.com

Affiliation HYDRA Institute for Marine Sciences, Elba Field Station, 57034 Campo nell’Elba, Italy
⨯

Biofilm and Diatom Succession on Polyethylene (PE) and Biodegradable Plastic Bags in Two Marine Habitats: Early Signs of Degradation in the Pelagic and Benthic Zone?

Andreas Eich,
Tobias Mildenberger,
Christian Laforsch,
Miriam Weber

Published: September 22, 2015
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0137201

About the Authors

Andreas Eich

Contributed equally to this work with: Andreas Eich, Tobias Mildenberger

Affiliation Biology/Chemistry Department, University of Bremen, Bibliothekstraße 1, 28359 Bremen, Germany

Tobias Mildenberger

Contributed equally to this work with: Andreas Eich, Tobias Mildenberger

Affiliation Biology/Chemistry Department, University of Bremen, Bibliothekstraße 1, 28359 Bremen, Germany

Christian Laforsch

Affiliation Animal Ecology I, University of Bayreuth and BayCEER, Universitaetsstraße 30, 95447 Bayreuth, Germany

Miriam Weber

* E-mail: m.weber@hydra-institute.com

Affiliation HYDRA Institute for Marine Sciences, Elba Field Station, 57034 Campo nell’Elba, Italy

Competing Interests

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Author Contributions

Conceived and designed the experiments: AE TM CL MW. Performed the experiments: AE TM. Analyzed the data: AE TM CL MW. Contributed reagents/materials/analysis tools: AE TM CL MW. Wrote the paper: AE TM CL MW.

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Diatoms
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Biofilms
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Biodegradable plastics
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Plastics
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Oxygen
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Marine environments
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Polymers
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Sea water
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