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Neuroactive steroids as targets of micro- and nano-plastics: Putative impact on brain function and disease
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This review paper looks at how tiny plastic particles (microplastics and nanoplastics) that build up in our bodies may disrupt hormones that our brain cells make and use to function properly—hormones that affect mood, brain cell growth, and overall mental health. While scientists already know these plastics can mess with reproductive hormones, this paper highlights that we still don't fully understand their effects on brain-specific hormones, suggesting this is an important but understudied area for protecting mental health as plastic pollution continues to grow.
Among environmental pollutants, microplastics (MPs) and nanoplastics (NPs) represent a major threat to marine and terrestrial ecosystems because of their widespread distribution, environmental persistence, accumulation in animal and human organs, and toxicity. MPs and NPs target the major endocrine components, including the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) and gonadal (HPG) axes, thus affecting steroid milieu with repercussions for peripheral endocrine glands and brain functions. Steroid hormones, either locally synthesized by neurons and glial cells, or reaching the brain from peripheral glands, exert neuroactive actions regulating neuronal excitability, neurogenesis, mood, and behavior. Despite numerous studies investigating the endocrine-disrupting effects of MPs/NPs and their potential reproductive toxicity, the implications of such effects on brain neuroactive steroids are poorly investigated. Here, we first illustrate how neuroactive steroids affect brain functions, then we review clinical and preclinical studies assessing the effects of MPs/NPs on neuroactive steroid levels, with the aim to understand putative implications for mental health.
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Nano and microplastics: unveiling their profound impact on endocrine health
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This review summarizes existing research showing that micro- and nanoplastics can disrupt the endocrine (hormone) system, altering reproductive hormones, thyroid function, and gene expression in lab and animal studies. Exposure to these particles triggered inflammation markers and oxidative stress in hormone-producing organs, suggesting that widespread plastic pollution may be contributing to rising rates of hormonal and reproductive health problems.
Effects of microplastics and nanoplastics on the brain and behavior: Evidence from rodent and human studies
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Tiny plastic particles that have already made their way into our bodies may do more than harm the heart and lungs, this review pulls together research suggesting they could also affect the brain and behavior, based on studies in animals, human data, and lab-grown brain tissue. While scientists are still working out exactly how much risk this poses to people, the early evidence is concerning enough that researchers say understanding these effects on brain health should be a priority as plastic pollution keeps growing.
Effects of Microplastics on Mental Health
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This review examines the emerging evidence linking microplastic exposure to mental health outcomes, discussing proposed mechanisms including neuroinflammation, gut-brain axis disruption, and endocrine interference from plastic-associated chemicals. The authors call for dedicated human cohort studies to establish whether environmental microplastic levels contribute to psychiatric or cognitive conditions.
The Impact of Microplastics and Nanoplastics on Human Health: A Follow-Up Study Focusing on Endocrine, Nervous, and Immune Systems
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This review examines evidence for microplastic and nanoplastic impacts on the endocrine, nervous, and immune systems, documenting how particles detected in human organs can disrupt hormone signaling, induce neuroinflammation, and alter immune function.
Micro- and Nano-plastics may affect the central regulation of reproduction: insights from in vitro and in vivo studies on GnRH neurons.
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This review examined evidence that micro- and nanoplastics can interfere with the central regulation of reproduction by disrupting hormonal signaling in the brain and endocrine glands. Animal studies show that plastic particle exposure can alter reproductive hormone levels and fertility outcomes.
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