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Nanoplastic exposure damages neural plasticity, cognitive abilities, and ecological adaptability of marine medaka Oryzias melastigma
Summary
Researchers exposed marine medaka fish to 50-nanometer polystyrene nanoplastics and found reduced cognitive abilities, with fish making faster but less accurate decisions in learning tasks. Exposed fish also showed altered social behavior, maintaining closer distances to each other while increasing reliance on shelters, indicating reduced ecological adaptability. Transcriptomic analysis revealed changes in genes involved in cell adhesion, signal transduction, and oxidative stress pathways.
Nanoplastics are widely distributed in diverse aquatic environments and pose potential threats to organisms. Despite the growing awareness of nanoplastics' toxicity, their effects on higher-order cognitive functions and ecological adaptability of fish remain poorly understood. This study investigated the effects of 50 nm polystyrene nanoplastics on the cognition and adaptability of marine medaka (Oryzias melastigma) and further explored potential molecular mechanisms through transcriptomic analyses. Exposed fish showed a pattern of faster decision-making but lower accuracy in spatial and numerical learning tasks, indicating reduced cognitive abilities. Exposed fish displayed closer inter-individual distances, increased avoidance distances, and more substantial reliance on shelters in mesocosm systems. Transcriptomic analysis also revealed altered expression of genes involved in cell adhesion, signal transduction, and oxidative stress, especially in focal adhesion and tight junction pathways. This study provides additional neurobehavioral toxicological evidence of nanoplastics and highlights the importance of including nanoplastics in the current plastic management strategies.