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Ingestion of Poly-Ethylene Terephthalate Nanofragments Derived from Plastic Bottles Triggers Long-term Gut Inflammation and Microbiome Dysbiosis in Mice
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Mice given nanoscale plastic particles from PET (a plastic used in water bottles) or polystyrene showed gut and liver effects. PET particles caused the strongest reactions, including liver DNA damage, lasting gut inflammation, and shifts in gut bacteria, with fewer beneficial microbes and more linked to inflammation, over a 28-day period.
Abstract Despite extensive research on polystyrene (PS) nanoplastics (NPs), the gastrointestinal health effects of representative NPs used in food and beverage packaging, for instance, polyethylene terephthalate (PET) used in water bottles, remain underexplored. Addressing this gap, female C57BL/6 mice were here exposed to PET (30–500 nm) and PS (50 nm and 200 nm) NPs via gavage to assess the histological, immunological, genotoxic, and microbiome alterations at days 1, 7 and 28 after exposure (single dose: 20 mg/kg bw). We found that PET NPs showed the most pronounced effects, including early liver DNA damage, chronic colonic inflammation, and downregulation of cell cycle and repair genes. Moreover, 16S rRNA gene sequencing revealed that PET exposure led to both a reduction in gut microbial diversity and beneficial taxa ( Odoribactera and Anaerotruncus ) and an increase in inflammatory taxa ( Roseburia and Neglecta ), demonstrating that the unresolved gut inflammation was closely linked to gut dysbiosis. Conversely, PS200 caused transient jejunal DNA damage while PS50 led to both prolonged liver genotoxicity and lymphocyte depletion in mesenteric lymph nodes. Overall, all NPs triggered distinct structural and inflammatory changes in the gut, but PET NPs’ disturbances, often seen in inflammatory diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease, were the greatest. Our findings highlight that ingestion of PET NPs poses risks for gut health and microbial homeostasis, underscoring the need for further investigation into their impact after chronic ingestion. This work also suggests that greater regulatory attention should be paid to these ubiquitous contaminants of the daily human diet and key indicator of the exposome.
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Mice exposed to PET microplastics, the type commonly found in plastic bottles, developed intestinal inflammation, changes in gut bacteria, and signs of a weakened gut barrier. Even at relatively low doses, the microplastics increased liver stress markers and disrupted the protective mucus layer in the colon, suggesting that everyday PET plastic exposure could contribute to digestive health problems.
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Researchers found that mice exposed to PET microplastics (the type commonly found in plastic bottles) over 17 weeks developed liver damage, including fat buildup, oxidative stress, and cell death. The study revealed that the damage was driven by changes in gut bacteria that altered lipid metabolism, and when researchers depleted the gut bacteria, the liver damage was reduced. This suggests the gut microbiome plays a key role in how microplastics cause harm to internal organs.
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Researchers orally dosed mice with bottle-derived PET nanoplastics and tracked gut and systemic responses over 28 days, finding dose-dependent DNA damage and inflammatory signaling in the jejunum and distal colon, immune suppression in lymph nodes at high doses, and evidence of epithelial reinforcement as the gut adapted to persistent nanoplastic exposure.
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Researchers exposed mice to PET microplastics ground from plastic bottles over 29 weeks and found that the particles caused obesity, liver enlargement, fatty liver disease, and early-stage scarring of liver tissue. The microplastics also disrupted gut bacteria and bile acid metabolism, pointing to damage along the gut-liver connection. The findings raise concerns about the long-term health effects of chronic exposure to the type of microplastics commonly found in food and beverages.
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Researchers fed mice micro- and nanoplastics at environmentally relevant levels and found significant gut damage, including disrupted gut bacteria, weakened intestinal barriers, and reduced immune function. The ratio of beneficial to harmful gut bacteria shifted, and immune cells in the gut decreased. Importantly, the duration of exposure and the size of plastic particles mattered more than the amount consumed, suggesting even low-level long-term exposure could harm gut health.
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