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Microplastic-induced multi-organ toxicity: cellular mechanisms and critical roles of organ crosstalk
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This review synthesizes current knowledge on how microplastics cause damage across multiple organ systems, including the liver, brain, lungs, kidneys, intestines, heart, and reproductive organs. Researchers emphasize the critical role of organ crosstalk, where microplastic-induced damage in one organ can trigger cascading effects in others, highlighting the systemic nature of microplastic toxicity.
Microplastics (MPs) are pervasive environmental contaminants with significant bioaccumulation potential, posing a growing threat to global health through multi-organ toxicity. This review systematically synthesizes current knowledge on MPs-induced organ-specific damage and its systemic health implications. We detail the accumulation of MPs in major organ systems, including the liver, brain, lungs, kidneys, intestines, heart, and reproductive organs. Furthermore, we emphasize the critical role of inter-organ communication in amplifying toxicity, such as gut-liver axis-mediated hepatotoxicity and gut-brain axis-driven neurotoxicity. Emerging evidence on the transgenerational adverse effects of parental MPs exposure is also discussed. The core cellular and molecular mechanisms across these organs are examined, with a particular focus on oxidative stress, inflammatory activation, mitochondrial dysfunction, and programmed cell death. This review is distinct in its integrative approach, offering a novel perspective by synthesizing organ-specific pathologies with cross-organ communication networks and transgenerational effects, thereby providing a more holistic understanding of MPs' systemic toxicity. Collectively, this review elucidates the exposure-organ damage correlation, analyzes the underlying pathogenic mechanisms, and aims to provide a scientific foundation for public health risk assessment and informed environmental policy formulation.
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Effects of micro-and-nano plastics on various organ systems in health
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This review examines the toxicological effects of micro- and nanoplastics on multiple human organ systems—including the gut, liver, lungs, cardiovascular system, and brain—summarizing mechanisms of harm such as oxidative stress, inflammation, and endocrine disruption.
From dysbiosis to systemic inflammation: The role of microplastics in inducing distal organ damage
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This review pulls together existing research showing how microplastics we swallow can disrupt the balance of bacteria in our gut, weaken the gut's protective lining, and trigger inflammation that spreads through the bloodstream. This gut-triggered inflammation may then contribute to damage in other organs—including the liver, kidneys, brain, and reproductive system—suggesting microplastic exposure could have far-reaching health effects beyond just digestive issues. More research is still needed to confirm these pathways and find ways to protect against this damage.
Pathogenesis of Micro/Nanoplastics in Mammalian Systems: Gut to Systemic Multi-Organ Dysfunction
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This review paper summarizes existing research on how tiny plastic particles, swallowed through food or water, affect the gut and then other organs like the liver, brain, lungs and hormone system. It looks at how particle size, shape and chemical makeup influence gut damage, and discusses different lab models used to study these effects.
Gut-Mediated Systemic Toxicity of Micro- and Nanoplastics: Nanoscale Biointerface Properties, Microbiota-Metabolite Crosstalk, and Evidence Across Gut-Organ Axes
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This review pulls together existing research to show how tiny plastic particles we accidentally eat can disrupt our gut—damaging its protective lining, throwing off our gut bacteria, and triggering inflammation—and then send harmful ripple effects to the liver, brain, kidneys, lungs, and reproductive organs. In other words, the health risks of microplastics may not stay confined to your digestive system; they could potentially affect your whole body. This is a summary of current science rather than new experiments, and it highlights that smaller, more weathered plastic particles appear to pose greater risks, an important insight given how widespread these particles are in our
The histopathological and functional consequences of microplastic exposure
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This review summarizes existing research on how microplastics cause physical damage to organs across multiple body systems, including the heart, brain, lungs, gut, and reproductive organs. The most common pattern is that microplastics trigger inflammation, which leads to scarring (fibrosis) and loss of organ function. These findings suggest that microplastic exposure could contribute to a range of health problems throughout the body.
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