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Silent saboteurs: How microplastics disrupt stem cells and tissue regeneration
Summary
This review synthesizes evidence that microplastics disrupt stem cell self-renewal, proliferation, and differentiation across multiple tissue types, raising concerns about the implications for tissue regeneration, wound healing, and long-term organ homeostasis.
Microplastics (MPs), defined as plastic particles with diameters less than 5 mm, have become significant global environmental contaminants. MPs accumulate in human tissues and organs, raising significant concerns about their potential biological toxicity. Evidence indicates that MPs and associated toxins disrupt stem cell self-renewal, proliferation, and differentiation processes essential for tissue regeneration and systemic homeostasis, yet research on MP-induced stem cell damage remains limited. To identify relevant and recent studies, we searched the PubMed database using title and abstract fields. This review synthesizes current evidence across organ systems, including nervous, hematopoietic, skeletal, and urinary systems, to systematically categorize phenotypic disruptions and underlying mechanisms in stem cells. We further evaluate the utility of stem-cell-derived organoids in modeling organ-specific MP toxicity. By consolidating fragmented findings, this work provides a critical framework for assessing MP risks to tissue regeneration and informs strategies for regenerative medicine and public health protection.
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