ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Microbiol.
Sec. Aquatic Microbiology
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2025.1649806
This article is part of the Research TopicPlankton Metabolisms and Interactions in Fluctuating EnvironmentsView all 11 articles
Ecological Responses of Phytoplankton and Bacterial Communities to Eutrophication in the Han River Basin
Provisionally accepted
- College of Life Science,Jianghan University, Wuhan, China
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This study comprehensively assessed the effects of eutrophication on phytoplankton and microbial communities in the Han River Basin, identifying 75% of sites as eutrophic. Significant variations in Total Nitrogen (TN), Total Phosphorus (TP), and Chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) levels were observed. Phytoplankton communities, comprising six phyla and genera, were dominated by Bacillariophyta in low trophic areas and Cyanophyta in high trophic areas, reflecting adaptations to nutrient availability. Bacterial communities, rich in Proteobacteria, varied with eutrophication levels and spatial distribution. A Monte Carlo test revealed significant correlations between environmental factors and community compositions, with Chl-a and Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) linked to bacteria, and TN to phytoplankton. Redundancy and variation partitioning analyses highlighted the influence of physical factors on bacteria and the greater explanatory power of environmental factors for microbial communities. Co-occurrence networks indicated intensified interspecies interactions, including competition and predation, under eutrophic conditions. These findings underscore the necessity for robust nutrient management and ecological restoration to protect the basin's ecosystem health. Future research should focus on enhancing ecosystem resilience and leveraging phytoplankton-bacterial interactions for advanced water management and pollution remediation strategies.
Keywords: Eutrophication, aquatic ecosystems, Phytoplankton-bacteria interaction, Han River, Ecological networks, Water quality management
Received: 19 Jun 2025; Accepted: 13 Oct 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Chen. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Yuanyuan Chen, yychen@jhun.edu.cn
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