# Colored Plastic Pollution Reshapes Aquatic Microbial Community and Resistance Profile via Divergent Pseudonatural Dissolved Organic Matter

## TL;DR

Colored plastics release different types of organic matter that change aquatic bacteria and increase antibiotic resistance risks.

## Contribution

This study reveals how plastic color affects the release of organic matter and its impact on microbial communities and antibiotic resistance.

## Key findings

- Red polyethylene releases more dissolved organic matter compared to other colors.
- Black polyethylene increases β-lactamase genes, indicating antibiotic resistance risks.
- Labile DOM from colored plastics promotes copiotroph bacteria and alters microbial interactions.

## Abstract

Plastic pollution alters the natural organic carbon pool in aquatic ecosystems via releasing pseudonatural dissolved organic matter (DOM). However, the composition and subsequent ecological effects of DOM leached from differently colored plastics remain unclear. Here, pronounced heterogeneity in the DOM released by colored polyethylene (PE) plastics is revealed: red PE releases higher levels of DOM, whereas white, black, and yellow PE produce more labile DOM. As a result, these labile PE‐derived DOM foster the growth of opportunistic taxa (notably copiotrophs within Pseudomonadota), reshaping community structure and resistance gene profiles. The elevated abundance of β‐lactamase genes highlights the potential risk of antibiotic resistance dissemination associated with black PE plastic pollution. Correlation‐based network analyses suggest that labile PE‐derived DOM inputs are associated with enhanced metabolic exchange and synergistic reallocation of available resources, accompanied by coordinated shifts in bacterial interactions and antibiotic resistance gene–host linkages. Taken together, the findings emphasize the overlooked role of plastic color in modulating DOM behavior and ecological impacts for the first time, offering targeted insights for mitigating plastic pollution and guiding sustainable production practices.

By altering the quantity and chemical composition of polyethylene‐derived dissolved organic matter, plastic color dynamically regulates bacterial metabolic interactions, thereby reshaping community resistance expression and facilitating the dissemination of antibiotic resistance.