We can't find the internet
Attempting to reconnect
Something went wrong!
Hang in there while we get back on track
Evidence of small microplastics (<100 μm) ingestion by Pacific oysters (Crassostrea gigas): A novel method of extraction, purification, and analysis using Micro-FTIR
Summary
Researchers developed a novel extraction, purification, and micro-FTIR analysis method to detect small microplastics under 100 micrometers in Pacific oysters (Crassostrea gigas), confirming ingestion of these smaller particles and finding that existing methods routinely miss this size fraction due to inadequate tissue digestion protocols.
Microplastics (MPs) are present in fresh, brackish, or marine waters. Micro- and macroinvertebrates can mistake MPs or small microplastics (SMPs, <100 μm) to be food particles and easily ingest them according to the size of their mouthparts. SMPs may then block the passage of food through the intestinal tract (i.e. hepatopancreas), accumulate within the organism, and enter the food web. Pacific oysters (Crassostrea gigas) are allochthonous filter-feeding bivalve mollusks, which have been introduced in coastal seas around the world in both natural banks and farms. Considering their economic and ecological value, these bivalves have been chosen as a model to study the ingestion of SMPs. A novel method for the extraction and purification of SMPs in bivalves was developed. Quantification and simultaneous polymer identification of SMPs using Micro-FTIR (Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy) were performed, with a limit of detection for the particle size of 5 μm.