Plastic polymers provide immense utility in almost all industries. However, their mass production and persistence in natural ecosystems has resulted in a significant accumulation of plastic waste in our biosphere. To protect structurally important plastic products from degradation as well as potentially accelerate the breakdown of plastic waste, the factors affecting plastic degradation in natural settings must be elucidated. In this study, six tent fabrics (A-F) containing polyvinylchloride (PVC) coatings were suspended in the tropical atmospheres of Horoko, Panama and Affobaka, Suriname for two years. At seven timepoints (1-, 2-, 3-, 6-, 9-, 12- and 24-months), fabric replicates were sampled for the quantification of fungal biomass, fabric mass loss, and the characterization of the fungal and bacterial communities via PCR metabarcoding. The Panama site had overall higher relative humidity and total precipitation, while the Suriname site was higher in overall temperature and total solar radiation. Each fabric showed consistent decreases in area-specific mass and tensile strength with time, with Fabric F at the Suriname site having the greatest decrease in both metrics throughout the experiment. Location and exposure time had a significant effect on both the fungal and bacterial communities; with the former being dominated by classes of phylum Ascomycota (Eurotiomycetes, Dothideomycetes, and Arthoniomycetes), and the latter dominated by the phyla Proteobacteria, Actinomycetota, and Cyanobacteria. Future studies should evaluate these taxonomic groups regarding their potential role in the direct or indirect breakdown of recalcitrant plastic polymers deployed in natural environments.
","abstract_html":"<p>Plastic polymers provide immense utility in almost all industries. However, their mass production and persistence in natural ecosystems has resulted in a significant accumulation of plastic waste in our biosphere. To protect structurally important plastic products from degradation as well as potentially accelerate the breakdown of plastic waste, the factors affecting plastic degradation in natural settings must be elucidated. In this study, six tent fabrics (A-F) containing polyvinylchloride (PVC) coatings were suspended in the tropical atmospheres of Horoko, Panama and Affobaka, Suriname for two years. At seven timepoints (1-, 2-, 3-, 6-, 9-, 12- and 24-months), fabric replicates were sampled for the quantification of fungal biomass, fabric mass loss, and the characterization of the fungal and bacterial communities via PCR metabarcoding. The Panama site had overall higher relative humidity and total precipitation, while the Suriname site was higher in overall temperature and total solar radiation. Each fabric showed consistent decreases in area-specific mass and tensile strength with time, with Fabric F at the Suriname site having the greatest decrease in both metrics throughout the experiment. Location and exposure time had a significant effect on both the fungal and bacterial communities; with the former being dominated by classes of phylum Ascomycota (<em>Eurotiomycetes</em>, <em>Dothideomycetes</em>, and <em>Arthoniomycetes</em>), and the latter dominated by the phyla <em>Proteobacteria</em>, <em>Actinomycetota</em>, and <em>Cyanobacteria</em>. Future studies should evaluate these taxonomic groups regarding their potential role in the direct or indirect breakdown of recalcitrant plastic polymers deployed in natural environments.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Rutledge, Ethan P"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Science (MS)","degree_level":"Masters Thesis","degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Kevin Kuehn","Christopher Flood","Jason Lee"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2025,"date_issued":"2025-12-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2025-12-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T05:45:55Z","subjects":["plastisphere","fungi","bacteria","biodegradation","biodeterioration","polyvinylchloride","Bioinformatics","Computational Biology","Environmental Health","Environmental Microbiology and Microbial Ecology","Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://aquila.usm.edu/masters_theses/1171","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Kevin Kuehn","Christopher Flood","Jason Lee"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Rutledge, Ethan P"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2027-01-31T08:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Masters Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science (MS)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["plastisphere","fungi","bacteria","biodegradation","biodeterioration","polyvinylchloride","Bioinformatics","Computational Biology","Environmental Health","Environmental Microbiology and Microbial Ecology","Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://aquila.usm.edu/masters_theses/1171"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Plastic polymers provide immense utility in almost all industries. However, their mass production and persistence in natural ecosystems has resulted in a significant accumulation of plastic waste in our biosphere. To protect structurally important plastic products from degradation as well as potentially accelerate the breakdown of plastic waste, the factors affecting plastic degradation in natural settings must be elucidated. In this study, six tent fabrics (A-F) containing polyvinylchloride (PVC) coatings were suspended in the tropical atmospheres of Horoko, Panama and Affobaka, Suriname for two years. At seven timepoints (1-, 2-, 3-, 6-, 9-, 12- and 24-months), fabric replicates were sampled for the quantification of fungal biomass, fabric mass loss, and the characterization of the fungal and bacterial communities via PCR metabarcoding. The Panama site had overall higher relative humidity and total precipitation, while the Suriname site was higher in overall temperature and total solar radiation. Each fabric showed consistent decreases in area-specific mass and tensile strength with time, with Fabric F at the Suriname site having the greatest decrease in both metrics throughout the experiment. Location and exposure time had a significant effect on both the fungal and bacterial communities; with the former being dominated by classes of phylum Ascomycota (Eurotiomycetes, Dothideomycetes, and Arthoniomycetes), and the latter dominated by the phyla Proteobacteria, Actinomycetota, and Cyanobacteria. Future studies should evaluate these taxonomic groups regarding their potential role in the direct or indirect breakdown of recalcitrant plastic polymers deployed in natural environments.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Spatiotemporal Dynamics of Microbial Communities Colonizing Plastic Tent Fabrics in a Tropical Environment"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Kevin Kuehn","Christopher Flood","Jason Lee"],"dc:creator":["Rutledge, Ethan P"],"dc:date.available":["2027-01-31T08:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["Plastic polymers provide immense utility in almost all industries. However, their mass production and persistence in natural ecosystems has resulted in a significant accumulation of plastic waste in our biosphere. To protect structurally important plastic products from degradation as well as potentially accelerate the breakdown of plastic waste, the factors affecting plastic degradation in natural settings must be elucidated. In this study, six tent fabrics (A-F) containing polyvinylchloride (PVC) coatings were suspended in the tropical atmospheres of Horoko, Panama and Affobaka, Suriname for two years. At seven timepoints (1-, 2-, 3-, 6-, 9-, 12- and 24-months), fabric replicates were sampled for the quantification of fungal biomass, fabric mass loss, and the characterization of the fungal and bacterial communities via PCR metabarcoding. The Panama site had overall higher relative humidity and total precipitation, while the Suriname site was higher in overall temperature and total solar radiation. Each fabric showed consistent decreases in area-specific mass and tensile strength with time, with Fabric F at the Suriname site having the greatest decrease in both metrics throughout the experiment. Location and exposure time had a significant effect on both the fungal and bacterial communities; with the former being dominated by classes of phylum Ascomycota (Eurotiomycetes, Dothideomycetes, and Arthoniomycetes), and the latter dominated by the phyla Proteobacteria, Actinomycetota, and Cyanobacteria. Future studies should evaluate these taxonomic groups regarding their potential role in the direct or indirect breakdown of recalcitrant plastic polymers deployed in natural environments.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://aquila.usm.edu/masters_theses/1171"],"dc:subject":["plastisphere","fungi","bacteria","biodegradation","biodeterioration","polyvinylchloride","Bioinformatics","Computational Biology","Environmental Health","Environmental Microbiology and Microbial Ecology","Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology"],"dc:title":["Spatiotemporal Dynamics of Microbial Communities Colonizing Plastic Tent Fabrics in a Tropical Environment"],"thesis:degree_level":["Masters Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science (MS)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T05:45:55Z"}