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Impact of microplastics pollution on human health and aquatic life: a review
Summary
This review summarizes how microplastics enter the environment from sources like plastic pellets, cosmetics, and the breakdown of larger plastics through UV light and weathering. Researchers describe how these tiny particles accumulate in oceans primarily from land-based human activities and transfer through the food chain from one organism to another. Evidence indicates that microplastic exposure in aquatic organisms can cause tissue damage, oxidative stress, and disruptions to normal biological processes.
Abstract Microplastics are recognized as the toxic pollutant of global concern. They enter into the environment from different sources such as plastic pellets, cosmetic exfoliants and opacifiers etc. Large amounts of microplastics are generated in the environment by the disintegration of large pieces of plastic due to abrasion, UV irradiation, photo‐oxidation, hydrolysis and biodegradation. Exposure of plastic to UV light fragments it into micro‐ and nano‐sized (≤0.1 μm) particles. The most common form of microplastics includes films, foams, pellets, beads, fibres, spheres and fragments. Plastic particles larger than 25 mm, less than 5 mm, larger than 1 mm, and smaller than 1 nm to 1 mm respectively are defined as mega, meso, micro and nano plastics. polystyrene, polyvinyl chloride, polyethylene, polypropline and polyethylene terephthalate are the basic polymers found as microplastics. Microplastics accumulated in the oceans are mainly from terrestrial human activities such as industrial manufacturing, agriculture and municipal solid waste landfilling etc. Microplastics in the ocean are transferred via trophic transfer from one organism to another and hence can be a major danger to marine ecology. Microplastics enter into the body of aquatic organisms through daily metabolic activities like respiration, eating and drinking water. The exposure of microplastics in fauna causes certain metabolic disintegration such as tissue damage, oxidative stress and changes in the antioxidant properties and immune system in fish. Microplastics in fish result in neurotoxicity, growth retardation and behavioural abnormalities as well. By affecting the nutrient cycles and food webs, the phytoplankton and zooplankton, microplastics are the agents of threat to aquatic ecosystems. Exposure to microplastics presents increasing concerns for bioaccumulation, changes in eating behaviour and for lowering primary production. The abundance of microplastic exposure to the environment occurs via consumption, inhalation and skin contact. Humans may experience oxidative stress, cytotoxicity, neurotoxicity, immune system disruption and transfer of microplastics to other tissues after being exposed. Microplastics are known to generate reactive oxygen species in aquatic organisms which lead to damage to nucleic acids, lipids and proteins in organisms. Due to the complexity of size and composition, the identification of microplastics is still difficult and requires sophisticated detection techniques like Fourier transform IR, Raman spectroscopy and techniques integrated with artificial intelligence. Future studies must concentrate on mitigation techniques, standardised procedures and enhanced monitoring. © 2025 Society of Chemical Industry.
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