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Electrostatic attraction of cationic pollutants by microplastics reduces their joint cytotoxicity
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This study found that the electrostatic attraction of cationic pollutants to negatively charged microplastic surfaces reduced the joint cytotoxicity of the combined contaminants in cell-based assays, suggesting that microplastics can sequester pollutants and modulate their bioavailability.
Microplastic (MP) pollution causes global concerns regarding the consequential impacts on human health. In particular, MPs may act as vectors for various contaminants to induce adverse effects in human. In this work, the joint cytotoxicity of two different MPs co-exposed with diverse ionic pollutants was investigated in two cell lines from human digestive system: human gastric epithelium (GES-1) and colorectal mucosa (FHC) cell lines. The results indicated that the cytotoxicity of cationic pollutants was alleviated by MPs more significantly than that of anionic pollutants in both culture medium and river water. The electrostatic attraction between the negatively charged MPs and cations was a key factor in determining the ultimate joint toxicity. Our findings indicate that the joint cytotoxicity of MP-pollutant mixtures may be proactively reduced by modulating the surface charge of MPs.
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Effect of microplastics on the environmental behavior of emerging contaminants in aquatic matrices
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This study examines how microplastics affect the environmental behavior of emerging contaminants in aquatic systems. Microplastics can adsorb other pollutants and alter their bioavailability, potentially increasing or decreasing toxic effects depending on the chemicals and environmental conditions.
Polystyrene nanoplastics and wastewater displayed antagonistic toxic effects due to the sorption of wastewater micropollutants
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Researchers found that polystyrene nanoplastics and wastewater micropollutants had antagonistic toxic effects when combined, because the nanoplastics sorbed positively charged pollutants through electrostatic interactions, reducing their bioavailability to aquatic organisms.
Interaction of Inorganic and Organic Pollutants with Microplastics
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This book chapter reviews how microplastics interact with inorganic and organic pollutants including heavy metals and organic compounds, via electrostatic interactions, hydrophobic partitioning, and other non-covalent mechanisms. It examines the role of microplastic surface area, functional groups, and aging in facilitating these interactions.
Sorption of pharmaceuticals on the surface of microplastics
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Researchers tested the ability of four common microplastic types to adsorb nine pharmaceutical compounds frequently found as water pollutants. They found that sorption involved both hydrophobic and electrostatic interactions, but under natural environmental conditions the binding was relatively weak. The study suggests that while microplastics can interact with pharmaceutical residues, their role as carriers of these contaminants in real aquatic environments may be more limited than previously assumed.
Adsorption Behavior of Microplastics as a Carrier of Various Contaminants and Their Ecotoxicity in Aquatic Environment
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This review examines how microplastics in aquatic environments act as "Trojan horse" carriers, adsorbing other pollutants (heavy metals, pesticides, pharmaceuticals) onto their surfaces through hydrophobic, electrostatic, and hydrogen-bond interactions. Co-exposure of microplastics plus adsorbed contaminants has been shown to amplify oxidative stress, reduce reproduction rates, and impair photosynthesis in aquatic organisms — suggesting the combined risk of microplastics plus hitchhiking chemicals is greater than either alone.
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When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.