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The Biological Effects of Polystyrene Nanoplastics on Human Peripheral Blood Lymphocytes

Nanomaterials 2022 60 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.
Devojit Kumar Sarma, Ruchi Dubey, Ravindra M. Samarth, Swasti Shubham, Pritom Chowdhury, Manoj Kumawat, Vinod Kumar Verma, Rajnarayan Tiwari, Manoj Kumar

Summary

Researchers assessed the cytotoxic and genotoxic effects of polystyrene nanoplastics on human peripheral blood lymphocytes using chromosomal aberration and micronucleus assays. They found dose-dependent increases in cell damage, chromosomal abnormalities, and hemolytic activity at the tested concentrations. The study provides evidence that nanoplastic particles can cause genetic damage to human immune cells under laboratory conditions.

Polymers
Body Systems

Environmental exposure to microplastics (MPs) and nanoplastics (NPs) is an increasing concern from human health perspectives. Little information on the genotoxic and cytotoxic potential of NP particles in human cells is available. We aimed to assess the cytotoxic and genotoxic potential of polystyrene nanoplastics (PSNPs) at different concentrations (2000μg/mL, 1000μg/mL, and 500μg/mL) by using chromosomal aberration (CA) and cytokinesis-block micronucleus assays (CBMN) on human peripheral lymphocytes. Dose-dependent hemolytic activity and cell viability were observed against the PSNPs exposure. Increased chromosomal aberrations, such as chromosomal breaks and dicentric chromosomes, and an increase in nucleoplasmic bridge (NBP) formation and nuclear budding (NBUD) were observed. The frequency of mitotic index (MI) decreased significantly in the PSNP-exposed groups from lower to higher concentrations. A significant increase in micronuclei (MN) formation and cytostasis% and a dose-dependent reduction in nuclear division index (NDI) in PSNP-exposed groups indicated oxidative stress-mediated cytotoxicity, DNA damage, and genomic instabilities due to PSNP exposure in human lymphocyte cells. This study highlights the importance of understanding the toxic mechanisms and associated chronic and acute health effects on humans due to exposure to this pervasive environmental pollutant.

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