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Micro- and nanoplastic in the human digestive and urinary system
Summary
This review summarized scientific evidence on how micro- and nanoplastics ingested through food reach the digestive and urinary systems, examining what is known about their behavior in the stomach, intestines, liver, and kidneys and the associated health risks.
Aim: To present the potential risks of introducing micro and nanoplastics into the human body through the digestive tract. Materials and methods: To compile this review, currently available scientific studies, other reviews, and meta-analyses on the topic of MNP, the digestive system, and the urinary system were analyzed. Available articles were analyzed in databases such as PubMed and Scopus. The databases were filtered using the terms: «microplastics»; «nanoplastics»; «food»; «intestines»; «stomach», «kidneys»; «liver»; «human». The most relevant literature sources were included in this review. The most recent articles were given priority. Conclusions: The following work allows us to clearly state that MNP particles have a negative impact on the proper functioning of these organs. During the preparation of the review, scientific studies were analyzed on the basis of which similarities were observed in the effect of MNP particles on cells, tissues, and organs. The most frequently observed effect was the production of reactive oxygen species leading to inflammation in the tissue subjected to MNP. This similarity was observed regardless of whether the study was conducted on in-vitro cells or on living organisms. Many other individual effects were observed for the specificity of a given section of the digestive system. The current state of scientific knowledge on the influence of MNP particles on cells, tissues, and organs of the digestive and urinary systems of animal and human organisms is not sufficient. Further studies should be conducted to allow conclusions to be drawn on how MNP particles act on human and animal organisms.
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