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What happens when plastics break down into microplastics and nanoplastics?
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Researchers Jeff Farner and Bukola Alimi are investigating the chemical and physical transformations that occur as plastic pollution weathers into microplastics and nanoplastics in the environment, tracking how particle properties change over time. Understanding the weathering process is critical because smaller nanoplastic particles exhibit greater biological uptake efficiency and may cross cellular barriers — including the gut, lung, and blood-brain barrier — at higher rates than larger microplastics.
Dr Jeff Farner and Dr Bukola Alimi are investigating what happens to plastic pollution when it weathers into microplastics and nanoplastics
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What are nanoplastics? An engineer explains concerns about particles too small to see
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Researchers explain that nanoplastics — the smallest category of microplastics, far narrower than a human hair — are poorly understood in terms of their composition, structure, and environmental breakdown, raising significant concerns about their potential risks to ecosystems and human health.
The Effects Of Micro- And Nanoplastics Are Not Yet Fully Understood
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Micro- and nanoplastics are now ubiquitous in marine and terrestrial environments, yet standardized methods for sampling, chemical analysis, and regulatory limits remain absent, leaving scientists unable to fully characterize exposure levels or set safe thresholds. Without agreed protocols, risk assessments for wildlife and human health are unreliable, hampering evidence-based policy to curb plastic pollution.
Millions of tonnes of nanoplastics are polluting the ocean
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Researchers highlight that millions of tonnes of nanoplastics smaller than a human hair are polluting the ocean, with these particles capable of passing through cell walls and entering the marine food web with poorly understood consequences.
Are microplastics bad for your health? More rigorous science is needed
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Researchers and science journalists assess the state of evidence on microplastic health risks, noting that tiny plastic particles have been detected even in the human brain, but cautioning that the quality of scientific findings varies widely and that more rigorous research is needed before firm health conclusions can be drawn.
Have environmental microplastics levels been overestimated?
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Emerging research suggests that existing measurements of environmental microplastic levels may be inflated due to inconsistent and non-standardized measurement methods across studies. Harmonizing detection and quantification protocols is essential before reliable conclusions can be drawn about true human exposure levels and the actual health risks posed by microplastic pollution.
Research digests by email
When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.