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Polylactic Acid Microplastics Do Not Exhibit Lower Biological Toxicity in Growing Mice Compared to Polyvinyl Chloride Microplastics

Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry 2023 20 citations ? Citation count from OpenAlex, updated daily. May differ slightly from the publisher's own count. Score: 55 ? 0–100 AI score estimating relevance to the microplastics field. Papers below 30 are filtered from public browse.

Yongfeng Deng, Yongfeng Deng, Yongfeng Deng, Yongfeng Deng, Yongfeng Deng, Yongfeng Deng, Yongfeng Deng, Yongfeng Deng, Yongfeng Deng, Yongfeng Deng, Hongli Tan, Ruqin Shen, Yongfeng Deng, Da Chen Pan Yang, Hongli Tan, Yongfeng Deng, Yongfeng Deng, Hongli Tan, Hongli Tan, Hongli Tan, Ruqin Shen, Hongli Tan, Yongfeng Deng, Da Chen Yongfeng Deng, Yongfeng Deng, Ruqin Shen, Hongli Tan, Hongli Tan, Hongli Tan, Ruqin Shen, Hongli Tan, Ruqin Shen, Hongli Tan, Yongfeng Deng, Da Chen Pan Yang, Hongli Tan, Da Chen Da Chen Ruqin Shen, Yongfeng Deng, Hongli Tan, Pan Yang, Hongli Tan, Da Chen Da Chen Da Chen Hongli Tan, Hongli Tan, Hongli Tan, Yongfeng Deng, Hongli Tan, Hongli Tan, Da Chen Yongfeng Deng, Da Chen Da Chen Da Chen Da Chen Da Chen

Summary

Researchers compared the health effects of biodegradable polylactic acid microplastics to conventional polyvinyl chloride microplastics in growing mice over six weeks. Contrary to expectations, the biodegradable microplastics caused equal or more severe harm, including greater disruption of gut bacteria, stronger inflammatory responses, and more intestinal damage. The study suggests that biodegradable plastics may not be safer than conventional plastics once they break down into microplastic-sized particles.

Polymers

PLA PVC

Body Systems

Digestive Hepatic

Models

Mouse

Study Type In vivo

Biomicroplastics (BMPs) will be produced during bioplastic degradation (i.e., polylactic acid), although bioplastics have been widely used for food packaging. Like conventional microplastics (MPs), BMPs would be mistakenly ingested into the body through diet or drinking water, but their health risks in vivo are poorly understood. Here, we deeply compared the toxicity difference between irregularly shaped polylactic acid (PLA-MPs, 16-350 μm) and polyvinyl chloride (PVC-MPs, 40-300 μm) MPs in growing mice. After six weeks of exposure, PLA-MP exposure resulted in more severe inhibition of the mice's weight gain than PVC-MPs did. Both PLA- and PVC-MPs significantly elevated the levels of oxidative stress. Moreover, significant changes including altered transcriptional profiles and significantly differentially expressed genes in liver and colon transcription levels were observed in the PVC- and PLA-MP groups. Compared with PVC-MPs, PLA-MPs have a stronger effect on lipid metabolism and digestive systems. PLA-MPs also caused gut microbiota dysbiosis, significantly interfering with the relative abundance of microbiota and altering microbial diversity. These findings indicated the toxicities of PLA-MPs in growing mice were not significantly reduced compared to PVC-MPs, which would also provide new insights for re-examining bioplastic safety.

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