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Gut microbiota-GABA axis dysregulation underlies polystyrene microplastic (PS-MP) neurotoxicity in rainbow trout: a role for oxidative stress and blood-brain barrier disruption.
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Researchers exposed rainbow trout to polystyrene microplastics for 14 days and found that particles accumulating in the gut and brain caused blood-brain barrier damage, gut dysbiosis, and suppressed GABA synthesis, establishing the gut microbiota-GABA signaling axis as a key pathway through which microplastics induce neurocognitive impairment in a commercially important aquaculture species.
Microplastics (MPs) threaten aquatic ecosystems and pose potential risks to organismal health through bioaccumulation in aquatic species. This study reveals that 14-day exposure to 5 μm polystyrene microplastics (PS-MPs) (500 μg/L) induces neurocognitive impairment in rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss), a globally consumed aquaculture species. MPs accumulated in brain and gut tissues, causing blood-brain barrier structural alterations, intestinal mucosal damage, and oxidative stress. Multi-omics analysis revealed associations between gut microbiota dysbiosis (reduced Ralstonia, increased Acinetobacter) to suppressed neuroactive pathways, particularly GABA synthesis and transport. Downregulation of monocarboxylate transporters (mct1/2) and GABA-related enzymes (GAD1/2) disrupted gut-to-brain GABA homeostasis, neurobehavioral deficits. These findings establish the gut microbiota-GABA axis as a critical mediator of MPs neurotoxicity, highlighting risks to seafood safety and necessitating urgent regulation of microplastic contamination in aquatic food chains.
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This study found that polystyrene nanoplastics disrupted the brain-gut connection in zebrafish at environmentally realistic concentrations, affecting growth, gut health, and brain chemistry. The nanoplastics altered neurotransmitter levels, particularly reducing a dopamine-related compound, and changed the balance of gut bacteria in ways that correlated with brain changes. These findings suggest a pathway by which nanoplastics in food and water could affect both digestive and brain health through the gut-brain axis.
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Researchers exposed juvenile discus fish to microfibers and nanoplastics and found that both types caused neurobehavioral problems, but through different mechanisms involving the brain-gut-microbiota axis. Nanoplastics weakened swimming and predatory abilities, while microfibers reduced growth, and both disrupted gut microbial communities that influence brain function. The study provides the first evidence linking microplastic-induced gut microbiome changes to neurological effects in fish through the gut-brain connection.
Neurophysiological and Behavioral Effects of Micro- and Nanoplastics in Aquatic Organisms
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Researchers reviewed evidence that micro- and nanoplastics in aquatic environments cross the blood-brain barrier, accumulate in neural tissues, and cause oxidative stress, neuroinflammation, and disrupted neurotransmitter signaling, with downstream effects on locomotion, feeding, predator avoidance, and social behavior across multiple aquatic species.
Combined effects of polystyrene micro-/nano-plastics and imidacloprid on Gut–Brain axis and neurotoxicity in juvenile Carassius auratus
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Researchers exposed juvenile crucian carp to polystyrene micro- and nanoplastics combined with the pesticide imidacloprid and found distinct size-dependent toxicity patterns. Nanoplastics primarily targeted the brain, causing blood-brain barrier breakdown and neurotoxic effects linked to behavioral changes, while microplastics caused more severe intestinal damage, with gut microbiome analysis implicating the microbiota-gut-brain axis as a pathway for systemic toxicity.
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Researchers fed gilthead seabream diets containing polystyrene microplastics and found that the particles disrupted the communication between the gut and liver, known as the gut-liver axis. The microplastics altered gut bacteria composition, increased liver inflammation markers, and changed bile acid metabolism. The study highlights how microplastic ingestion can trigger a chain of interconnected effects across multiple organ systems in fish.
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