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Microplastics as vectors of pharmaceuticals in aquatic organisms – An overview of their environmental implications
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Researchers reviewed how microplastics act as "vectors" for pharmaceutical contaminants in aquatic environments, absorbing drugs onto their surfaces and then releasing them inside organisms after ingestion — potentially amplifying the toxicity of pharmaceuticals throughout the food web.
Microplastics (MPs) have been recognized as an environmental threat due to their persistence, ubiquity, and toxicity potential. Due to their small size, MPs are endowed with a large specific surface area, having the ability to sorb and accumulate other contaminants that co-exist with them in the aquatic environment as it is the case of pharmaceuticals. In this way, MPs can act as vectors, facilitating the contact of pharmaceuticals with aquatic organisms. Once ingested, MPs may desorb pharmaceuticals, increasing their bioavailability, which could promote their bioaccumulation and biomagnification through the food web as well as modulate their toxic effects. Microplastics may differently impact the toxicity of pharmaceuticals by potentiating (synergism) or decreasing (antagonism) it. This review aims at highlighting the role of MPs as vectors of pharmaceuticals to aquatic organisms and how the interaction of these emerging contaminants may influence the bioaccumulation and toxicity of pharmaceuticals on biota. Examples of different scenarios resulting from the exposure of aquatic life to MPs and pharmaceuticals are presented. Future studies should cover a broader range of polymer types and environmental realistic concentrations to better understand the impact of MPs on the bioaccumulation and toxicity of pharmaceuticals.
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Micro(nano)plastics as a vector of pharmaceuticals in aquatic ecosystem: Historical review and future trends
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This systematic review examines how microplastics and nanoplastics in water can absorb and carry pharmaceutical drugs, creating a combined pollution threat. When medications attach to tiny plastic particles in rivers and oceans, they may become more harmful to aquatic life and potentially to humans who consume contaminated seafood or water. The research traces how this emerging double-threat has grown since 2018 and identifies key knowledge gaps.
Microplastic–Pharmaceuticals Interaction in Water Systems
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This review examined the interactions between microplastics and pharmaceutical compounds in aquatic environments, exploring how microplastics act as vectors that concentrate, transport, and potentially enhance the bioavailability and toxicity of drug residues in water.
Interactive effects of micro/nanoplastics and nanomaterials/pharmaceuticals: Their ecotoxicological consequences in the aquatic systems
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Researchers reviewed how micro- and nanoplastics interact with co-occurring nanomaterials and pharmaceuticals in aquatic environments, finding that plastics act as vectors that can either amplify or attenuate the bioavailability and toxicity of these contaminants depending on species, trophic level, and environmental conditions.
Microplastics as an Ecological Vector Transport for Pharmaceuticals: Insights into the Interaction Mechanisms
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Researchers investigated the capacity of microplastics to act as ecological vectors for pharmaceutical compounds, reviewing the adsorption mechanisms between hydrophilic drug molecules and plastic particle surfaces. The findings suggest microplastics may concentrate and transport pharmaceuticals into ecosystems and food chains beyond what water chemistry alone would predict.
On the Influence of Environmental Conditions on Microplastic Sorption Dynamics and Mechanisms of Pharmaceuticals in Aquatic Ecosystems
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This review examines how environmental conditions — including temperature, pH, salinity, and dissolved organic matter — influence the dynamics and mechanisms by which microplastics sorb pharmaceutical pollutants in aquatic ecosystems. Microplastics acting as carriers for pharmaceutical compounds create combined exposure risks for aquatic organisms and humans, as pharmaceuticals sorbed to microplastics can be ingested together and may have synergistic toxic effects.
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