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Assessment of human dermal absorption of flame retardant additives in polyethylene and polypropylene microplastics using 3D human skin equivalent models
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Using 3D lab-grown human skin models, researchers found that flame retardant chemicals (PBDEs) embedded in polyethylene and polypropylene microplastics can be absorbed through the skin. Up to 8% of the flame retardant dose was bioavailable through dermal contact, with factors like sweat, particle size, and plastic type influencing absorption rates. This is the first study to demonstrate that chemical additives in microplastics can enter the body through skin exposure, adding to the known ingestion and inhalation routes.
To overcome ethical and technical challenges impeding the study of human dermal uptake of chemical additives present in microplastics (MPs), we employed 3D human skin equivalent (3D-HSE) models to provide first insights into the dermal bioavailability of polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDEs) present in MPs; and evaluated different factors influencing human percutaneous absorption of PBDEs under real-life exposure scenario. PBDEs were bioavailable to varying degrees (up to 8 % of the exposure dose) and percutaneous permeation was evident, albeit at low levels (≤0.1 % of the exposure dose). While the polymer type influenced the release of PBDEs from the studied MPs to the skin, the polymer type was less important in driving the percutaneous absorption of PBDEs. The absorbed fraction of PBDEs was strongly correlated (r = 0.88) with their water solubility, while the dermal permeation coefficient P of PBDEs showed strong association with their molecular weight and logK. More sweaty skin resulted in higher bioavailability of PBDEs from dermal contact with MPs than dry skin. Overall, percutaneous absorption of PBDEs upon skin contact with MPs was evident, highlighting, for the first time, the potential significance of the dermal pathway as an important route of human exposure to toxic additive chemicals in MPs.
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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.