Global Risks of Microplastics to Ecosystem and Human Health: An Emerging Environmental Disaster

Microplastic contamination is an emerging environmental issue of current times. It has been shown to have negative impacts on numerous levels of biological organization. Research on the distribution and effects of microplastics in the environment has been gaining momentum since few years, especially post COVID-19 pandemic. Scientists have used a wide range of studies to demonstrate that tiny, insoluble polymeric particles may have the ability to have widespread effects on ecosystems. In ecosystems, microplastics offer a distinctive and substantial surface for microbial colonization. The rate of organic matter decomposition and horizontal gene transfer is increased to the greatest extent by the creation of microorganism-microplastic complexes, such as biofilms. The present scenario entails the influence of microplastics on the makeup and functioning of microbial communities, which in turn affects microplastics physical and chemical fate. For the fields of microbiology, ecology, and ecotoxicology, this new paradigm presents difficulties. There is a requirement for the establishment of a process that is capable of assessing the efficacy of experimental research. This mechanism is necessary to accurately assess the possible risks that are connected with plastic particles within the context of risk assessment. To improve comprehension of the methodologies utilized and their potential ramifications for the capacity of environmental risk evaluations to assess the risk of microplastics, an in-depth assessment was conducted to investigate the existing standards and extent of research concerning environmental microplastics.