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Bisphenols—A Threat to the Natural Environment

Materials 2023 31 citations ? Citation count from OpenAlex, updated daily. May differ slightly from the publisher's own count. Score: 60 ? 0–100 AI score estimating relevance to the microplastics field. Papers below 30 are filtered from public browse.
Magdalena Zaborowska, Jadwiga Wyszkowska, Agata Borowik, Jan Kucharski

Summary

This review examines the environmental and health threats posed by bisphenol A (BPA) and its replacements, bisphenol F and bisphenol S, which were introduced as safer alternatives. However, because these substitutes have similar chemical structures to BPA, they may pose comparable risks to human health and the environment, including hormone disruption. The study is relevant to microplastics research because bisphenols are common additives in plastics that can leach out as plastics break down into microparticles.

Negative public sentiment built up around bisphenol A (BPA) follows growing awareness of the frequency of this chemical compound in the environment. The increase in air, water, and soil contamination by BPA has also generated the need to replace it with less toxic analogs, such as Bisphenol F (BPF) and Bisphenol S (BPS). However, due to the structural similarity of BPF and BPS to BPA, questions arise about the safety of their usage. The toxicity of BPA, BPF, and BPS towards humans and animals has been fairly well understood. The biodegradability potential of microorganisms towards each of these bisphenols is also widely recognized. However, the scale of their inhibitory pressure on soil microbiomes and soil enzyme activity has not been estimated. These parameters are extremely important in determining soil health, which in turn also influences plant growth and development. Therefore, in this manuscript, knowledge has been expanded and systematized regarding the differences in toxicity between BPA and its two analogs. In the context of the synthetic characterization of the effects of bisphenol permeation into the environment, the toxic impact of BPA, BPF, and BPS on the microbiological and biochemical parameters of soils was traced. The response of cultivated plants to their influence was also analyzed.

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