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Adsorption of Emerging Contaminants on Microplastics in the Environment: A Systematic Review
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This systematic review found that microplastics can absorb and carry other harmful chemicals — like pesticides, pharmaceuticals, and heavy metals — through the environment. This "hitchhiker effect" means microplastics may deliver concentrated doses of toxic substances to organisms and potentially to humans.
Emerging contaminants such as synthetic organic compounds, personal care products, heavy metals, dyes, pharmaceuticals, natural organic matter, and other compounds can adsorb onto microplastic (MP) surfaces. These microplastics and microplastic-bound emerging contaminants have become a global concern, as they may pose significant risks to human health, aquatic ecosystems, and environmental sustainability. The partitioning of emerging contaminants between microplastics and the aquatic environment and their fate and transport in the aqueous environment are influenced by different environmental conditions and physicochemical characteristics. Polymer properties, such as surface area and aging, play critical roles in the fate and transport of MPs and emerging contaminants. Emerging contaminants and MPs interact primarily through van der Waals forces, electrostatic interactions, hydrophobic partitioning, and pore-filling mechanisms. Further, biofilm formation on MPs significantly enhances contaminant adsorption. MPs can act as carriers for toxic contaminants, leading to bioaccumulation and potential health risks, including reproductive and digestive disorders as well as antibiotic resistance. We finally recommend several future research directions, particularly in understanding the long-term environmental fate of contaminant-bound MPs, their bioaccumulation in organisms, and the synergistic effects of co-contamination.
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Interaction of Chemical Contaminants with Microplastics
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This review examines how chemical contaminants like heavy metals, pesticides, and pharmaceuticals adsorb onto microplastic surfaces and are transported through the environment. Microplastics act as vectors that concentrate and move toxic chemicals, potentially amplifying human exposure through food and water.
Microplastics as carriers of environmental contaminants: Implications for human exposure, toxicokinetics, and health risk.
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Tiny plastic particles found in our air, water, and food aren't just a problem on their own, this review pulls together existing research showing they can act like sponges, soaking up toxic chemicals like heavy metals, industrial pollutants, and even medications, then potentially carrying them into our bodies. Scientists have already found microplastics in human tissue, and this combination of plastic plus hitchhiking chemicals may pose greater health risks than either would alone, though more research is needed to fully understand the danger.
Marine microplastics as vectors of major ocean pollutants and its hazards to the marine ecosystem and humans
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Researchers reviewed how microplastics in the ocean act as "hitchhikers" for other pollutants — absorbing and carrying heavy metals, pesticides, and chemicals into marine food webs and ultimately toward humans. While direct proof of microplastic harm to humans is still limited, the accumulated evidence of toxic chemical transport through seafood and drinking water raises serious concern.
Occurrence and Fate of Emerging Contaminants with Microplastics Current Scenario, Sources and Effects
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This review chapter covers the current state of microplastic contamination across marine and terrestrial environments, explaining how microplastics act as vectors for other pollutants — including pharmaceuticals, pesticides, and heavy metals — that accumulate on their surfaces. These contaminant-laden particles are consumed by marine organisms and travel up the food chain, reaching human food sources. The work underscores that microplastics are not just a physical hazard but also a chemical delivery system that amplifies the toxic burden on ecosystems and people.
A comprehensive review on microplastics as vectors of chemical and biological pollutants
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This review pulls together existing research showing that tiny plastic particles (microplastics) don't just pollute on their own — they can act like sponges, soaking up other harmful chemicals and even microbes from their surroundings and carrying them into the environment and food chain. This matters because plastic-bound pollutants appear to be more toxic and more likely to build up in living organisms than those same pollutants floating freely, raising concerns about how much these "hitchhiking" toxins could affect human health through contaminated food and water. The authors call for more real-world testing to better understand these risks and guide future safety regulations.
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When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.