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Effects of polystyrene microplastics on the composition of the microbiome and metabolism in larval zebrafish

Chemosphere 2018 472 citations

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Researchers exposed larval zebrafish to two sizes of polystyrene microplastics and found significant changes in gut microbiome composition and metabolic activity. The microplastics altered the abundance and diversity of gut bacteria and disrupted metabolic pathways important for development. The study suggests that early-life exposure to microplastics could have meaningful biological consequences by reshaping the gut environment of developing organisms.

Polymers
Body Systems

Microplastics are major pollutants in marine environment and may have health effects on aquatic organisms. In this study, we used two sizes (5 and 50 μm diameter) of fluorescent and virgin polystyrene microplastics to analyze the adverse effects on larval zebrafish. In our study, we evaluated the effects on larval zebrafish after exposure to 100 and 1000 μg/L of two sizes of polystyrene microplastics for 7 days. Our results show that polystyrene microplastics could cause alterations in the microbiome at the phylum and genus levels in larval zebrafish, including changes in abundance and diversity of the microbiome. In addition, metabolomic analysis suggested that exposure to polystyrene microplastics induced alterations of metabolic profiles in larval zebrafish, and differential metabolites were involved in energy metabolism, glycolipid metabolism, inflammatory response, neurotoxic response, nucleic acid metabolism, oxidative stress. Polystyrene microplastics also significantly decreased the activities of catalase and the content of glutathione. In addition, the results of gene transcription analysis showed that exposure to polystyrene microplastics induced changes in glycolysis-related genes and lipid metabolism-related genes, confirming that polystyrene microplastics disturbed glycolipid and energy metabolism. Taken together, the results obtained in the present study indicated that the potential effects of environmental microplastics on aquatic organisms should not be ignored.

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Polystyrene microplastics (PS-MPs): A Review on metabolic disruptions and potential obesogenic implications using -omics approaches based evidences on zebrafish model

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This review summarizes growing evidence that polystyrene microplastics can disrupt fat and energy metabolism in zebrafish, potentially contributing to obesity-like effects. The microplastics altered lipid processing, energy balance, and gut bacteria composition through multiple biological pathways. These findings are relevant to human health because they suggest microplastics could be an overlooked factor in the global rise of obesity and metabolic disorders.

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