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Mechanistic Insights into Competitive Adsorption of Antibiotics on PET, PP, and HDPE Microplastics
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Scientists found that microplastics in water can act like tiny sponges, soaking up antibiotics, especially certain types like doxycycline, with the plastic called PET (used in bottles and food packaging) absorbing the most. This matters because it means microplastics could help transport antibiotics through waterways and potentially into our food and water supply, which raises concerns about spreading antibiotic residues and contributing to antibiotic resistance. More research is needed to understand what this means once these plastic-antibiotic combos end up in the environment we interact with daily.
The co-occurrence of microplastics and antibiotics in aquatic environments has raised increasing concern because their interactions remain poorly understood. This study investigated the interactions between two co-existing aquatic pollutants, antibiotics and microplastics, by evaluating the adsorption of nine commonly detected antibiotics onto PET, PP, and HDPE microplastics. The microplastics were considered environmentally contaminants rather than adsorbents intended for water treatment. Adsorption kinetics, equilibrium isotherms, and multi-component competitive models were employed, while the effects of the microplastic size, dosage, and water matrix composition were also studied. The adsorption kinetics for most antibiotics were best described by the pseudo-second order model (R2 > 0.90), with the modelling suggesting contributions from film diffusion. The Freundlich and multi-component Sheindorf–Rebuhn–Sheintuch (SRS) models represented the equilibrium adsorption, indicating heterogeneous and competitive adsorption behaviour. PET exhibited the highest adsorption capacity, reaching 0.80 mg/g for doxycycline and 0.75 mg/g for oxytetracycline at 2000 mg/L microplastic. The competitive adsorption suggested that aromatic and moderately hydrophobic antibiotics showed greater adsorption, while highly polar antibiotics exhibited weaker adsorption and greater displacement. Potential interactions included electrostatic interactions, hydrogen bonding, and π–π interactions. These findings provide insights into antibiotic–microplastic interactions and emphasise the roles of the polymer type, molecular structure, and environmental conditions in influencing antibiotic fate and transport in aquatic environments.
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Adsorption of Macrolide Antibiotics and a Metabolite onto Polyethylene Terephthalate and Polyethylene Microplastics in Aquatic Environments
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Researchers studied how four macrolide antibiotics and a metabolite adsorb onto polyethylene terephthalate and polyethylene microplastics in water. They found that antibiotic adsorption followed a linear model, with PET showing higher adsorption capacity than polyethylene. The study suggests that microplastics in aquatic environments may serve as carriers for antibiotics, potentially affecting how these pharmaceutical pollutants are distributed in water systems.
Adsorption interactions between typical microplastics and enrofloxacin: Relevant contributions to the mechanism
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This study investigated how common microplastics (polyethylene, PVC, and polystyrene) absorb the antibiotic enrofloxacin from the environment. The researchers found that microplastics can effectively bind antibiotics through multiple chemical mechanisms, with the strength of binding depending on water conditions like acidity. This is concerning because microplastics carrying antibiotics could transport them into the food chain, potentially contributing to antibiotic resistance and affecting human health.
Sorption of tetracycline antibiotics by microplastics, associated mechanisms, and risk assessments
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Researchers systematically investigated how three common microplastic types adsorb tetracycline antibiotics. The study found that polystyrene had the highest adsorption capacity at 178.57 micrograms per gram, followed by PVC and polyethylene, and that PVC and polystyrene strongly retained the antibiotics with minimal desorption, raising concerns about compound pollution from microplastic-antibiotic combinations in the environment.
Implications of polystyrene and polyamide microplastics in the adsorption of sulfonamide antibiotics and their metabolites in water matrices
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Researchers found that polystyrene and polyamide microplastics can absorb sulfonamide antibiotics from water, with smaller particles and acidic conditions increasing absorption significantly. This means microplastics in the environment can act as carriers for antibiotics, potentially spreading antimicrobial resistance. The finding raises concerns because people may be exposed to both microplastics and the drugs they carry through contaminated water and food.
Chlorination-improved adsorption capacity of microplastics for antibiotics: A combined experimental and molecular mechanism investigation
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Researchers found that when microplastics go through chlorine disinfection in water treatment plants, they become better at absorbing antibiotics like tetracycline. Chlorination changes the surface of polystyrene microplastics, making them stickier for these drugs through stronger chemical bonding. This means treated wastewater may contain microplastics loaded with antibiotics, potentially increasing health risks when released into the environment.
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