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55 Investigating the co-Exposure of Micro(nano)Plastics and Indoor/Outdoor Particulate Matter Using an Alveolar BarrierIn Vitro Model
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This study set out to investigate what happens when human lung cells are exposed simultaneously to microplastics shed from face masks and real-world particulate matter from indoor and outdoor air. Using an advanced air-liquid interface model with two lung cell types, the researchers aimed to measure cytotoxicity, oxidative stress, inflammation, and DNA damage — results that will help fill a major knowledge gap about the combined health risks of inhaling plastic particles alongside conventional air pollution.
Abstract The impact of micro-, nanoplastics (MNPs) and particulate matter (PM) upon human health are escalating concerns worldwide. MNPs released from surgical face masks, and PM from ambient air pollution, can both be inhaled and consequently have potentially significant negative impacts upon human health, particularly on our lung epithelial cell structure and function. Currently, the impact of the realistic co-exposure of these samples is unknown. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine the potential inhaled hazardous health effects of the co-exposure of MNPs and ambient (indoor and outdoor) air PM. Using an advanced in vitro testing model combined with a specific mechanistic toxicology approach, it is hypothesised that the co-exposure approach will elucidate important information regarding the differential toxicology of ambient (indoor and outdoor) air PM. The in vitro system will consist of alveolar epithelial type-II cells (-NCI-H441) combined with differentiated monocytes (dTHP-1), cultured at the relevant in vivo ratio and at the air-liquid interface. Cell cultures will be exposed for both 4 and 24hrs to MNP (commercially available polypropylene (PP) and blue face mask extracted PP), PM (NIST 2584 and NIST 1649a respectively) and then subsequent MNP+PM (both NIST 2584 and NIST 1649a respectively) via aerosol (VITROCELL Cloud12), using alternative dosimetry patterns. The biochemical endpoints of cytotoxicity, oxidative stress, (pro-)inflammatory response and genotoxicity, will then be assessed to provide the basis for future global analytical techniques to examine the currently unknown human hazard of inhaled MNPs (+/- PM).
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99 The Relative Toxicity and Bioreactivity of Ambient Microplastic Pollution to Human Alveolar Lung Epithelial Cells with and Without Urban PM2.5
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This lab study exposed human lung cells to microplastic particles (polypropylene and polyamide) at sizes found in real-world air pollution, finding that both types caused cell death while urban air pollution particles (PM2.5) triggered inflammatory responses instead. The two types of harm worked through different mechanisms and didn't reliably combine when mixed, suggesting that microplastics in inhaled air pose a distinct and understudied risk to the respiratory system beyond conventional air pollution.
56 Combined microplastic and indoor or urban dust exposure potentiates inflammatory responses in a human alveolar model in vitro
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Researchers exposed a three-cell alveolar model — including type I and type II pneumocytes alongside macrophages — at the air-liquid interface to polyamide, PET, or polystyrene particles followed by urban or indoor dust, finding that while single plastic exposures produced minimal cytokine release, combined exposures significantly elevated IL-8, indicating synergistic pulmonary inflammation.
122 Elucidating the Impact of Inhaled Micro-, Nanoplastics (MNPs) from Surgical Face Masks In Vitro
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This in vitro study tested whether polypropylene particles shed from surgical face masks can harm human lung cells, finding that aerosolized mask-derived microplastics caused dose-dependent cell death, increased inflammatory markers (IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8), and early signs of DNA damage. The results suggest that breathing particles released from plastic masks represents a real hazard to the respiratory system, though more research is needed to establish real-world exposure levels.
Developing a model to test microplastic impact on lung epithelial barriers formation and functionality
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Researchers developed an air-liquid interface lung epithelial model using A549 cells on PET inserts to evaluate the impact of PET and polystyrene microplastics on the human lung barrier, characterizing transepithelial electrical resistance and permeability over time to establish a stable barrier model more representative of natural alveolar conditions than standard submerged culture.
Air pollution and microplastic as modifiers of epithelial injury and repair in models of acute, chronic, and allergic airway inflammation
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Scientists exposed lab-grown human airway cells to air pollution particles and microplastic fibers, and found the combo was more damaging when the cells were already stressed—whether from allergies, smoking-related damage, or infection. This suggests that people with existing lung conditions like asthma or COPD may be especially vulnerable to the health effects of breathing in pollution and microplastics, since their airway cells have a harder time repairing themselves under this "double hit."
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