Marine Litter & Microplastics Research Group (ML&MRG)

ML&MRG was established in 2017 and has been studying the contamination of macro- and microplastics in coastal areas and all aquatic environments with the main objective of addressing the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (11,12 and 14) targeting the issue of marine plastics and the need to prevent and significantly reduce marine pollution. The study project funded by Government of Tamil Nadu is in progress to assess the level of microplastics in coastal areas, estuaries and lakes in Tamil Nadu. The following are some interesting studies:

• Edward, J.K.P., Mathews, G., Diraviya Raj, K., Laju, R.L., Bharath, M.S., Kumar, P.D., Arasamuthu, A., Grimsditch, G. (2019) Marine debris – An emerging threat to the reef areas of Gulf of Mannar, India. Marine Pollution Bulletin, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2019.110793.
• Jamila Patterson, K. Immaculate Jayasantha, Narmatha Sathish, J.K. Patterson Edward and Andy M. Booth (2020). Microplastic and heavy metal distributions in an Indian coral reef ecosystem. Science of The Total Environment. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.140706
• Immaculate Jeyasanta, K., Narmatha Sathish, Jamila Patterson and J.K. Patterson Edward (2020). Macro-, meso- and microplastic debris in the beaches of Tuticorin district, Southeast coast of India. Marine Pollution Bulletin, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2020.111055
• Immaculate Jeyasanta, K., Jamila Patterson, Gabriel Grimsditch and J.K. Patterson Edward (2020). Occurrence and characteristics of microplastics in the coral reef, sea grass and near shore habitats of Rameswaram Island, India. Marine Pollution Bulletin, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2020.111674
• Narmatha Sathish, M., Immaculate Jeyasanta and Jamila Patterson (2020). Occurrence of microplastics in epipelagic and mesopelagic fishes from Tuticorin, Southeast coast of India. Science of the Total Environment, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.137614.
• Narmatha Sathish, M., K. Immaculate Jeyasanta and Jamila Patterson (2020). Monitoring of microplastics in the clam Donax cuneatus and its habitat in Tuticorin coast of Gulf of Mannar (GoM), India. Environmental Pollution. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2020.115219
• Immaculate Jeyasanta, K., Jamila Patterson, Gabriel Grimsditch and J.K. Patterson Edward (2020). Occurrence and characteristics of microplastics in the coral reef, sea grass and near shore habitats of Rameswaram Island, India. Marine Pollution Bulletin, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2020.111674
• Narmatha Sathish, M., Immaculate Jeyasanta, K. and Jamila Patterson (2020). Microplastic Contamination in River Kosasthalaiyar, Associated Creek and Lake of Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. Journal of Aquatic Biology & Fisheries (Special Issue on Rivers), Vol.8(S), 68-76.
• Narmatha Sathish, M., Immaculate Jeyasanta and Jamila Patterson (2020). Microplastics in Salt of Tuticorin, Southeast Coast of India. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology, DOI: 10.1007/s00244-020-00731-0
• Narmatha Sathish , K. Immaculate Jeyasanta and Jamila Patterson, 2019. Abundance, characteristics and surface degradation features of microplastics in beach sediments of five coastal areas in Tamil Nadu, India. Marine Pollution Bulletin, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2019.03.037
• Jamila Patterson, K. Immaculate Jeyasanta, Narmatha Sathish, Andy M. Booth and J.K. Patterson Edward (2019). Profiling microplastics in the Indian edible oyster, Magallana bilineata collected from the Tuticorin coast, Gulf of Mannar, Southeastern India. Science of the Total Environment, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.07.063
• Jamila Patterson, K. Immaculate Jeyasanta, R.L. Laju and J.K. Patterson Edward (2021). Microplastic contamination in Indian edible mussels (Perna perna and Perna viridis) and their environs, Marine Pollution Bulletin, 171 (2021) 112678, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2021.112678
• Jamila Patterson, K. Immaculate Jeyasanta, R.L. Laju, Andy M. Booth, Narmatha Sathish and J.K. Patterson Edward (2022). Microplastic in the coral reef environments of the Gulf of Mannar, India – Characteristics, distributions, sources and ecological risks. Environmental Pollution, 298 (2022) 118848, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2022.118848
• Laju, R.L., M. Jayanthi, K. Immaculate Jeyasanta, Jamila Patterson, N. Gladwin Gnana Asir, M. Narmatha Sathish and J.K. Patterson Edward (2022). Spatial and vertical distribution of microplastics and their ecological risk in an Indian freshwater lake ecosystem, Science of the Total Environment, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.153337