Weathering impacts the uptake of polyethylene microparticles from toothpaste in Mediterranean mussels (M. galloprovincialis)

Mediterranean mussels (Mytilus galloprovincialis) were exposed over 21 days to polyethylene (PE) particles (0.01 mg ml; 50-570 μm) isolated from toothpaste. PE was deployed in the Outer Oslofjord (Norway) for 21 days, before exposing the mussels to both virgin (PE-V) and weathered PE (PE-W) particles. The mussels ingested both types of particles, but significantly more weathered particles were ingested than virgin (p = .0317), based on PE dosed by weight (mg ml) but not when considering particle number (PE-V: 1.18 ± 0.16 particles ml; PE-W 1.86 ± 0.66 particles ml). PE particle ingestion resulted in structural changes to the gills and digestive gland, as well as necrosis in other tissues such as the mantle. No differences were found regarding the degree of tissue alteration between PE-virgin and PE-weathered exposures. This current study illustrates the importance of using weathered particles in microplastic exposure studies to reflect the behaviour of plastic particles after entering the marine environment. The observed tissue alterations demonstrate the potential adverse effects to mussels exposed to microplastic particles.