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Papers
113 resultsShowing papers from Lovely Professional University
ClearUnderstanding the sources, fate and effects of microplastics in aquatic environments with a focus on risk profiling in aquaculture systems
This review summarizes how microplastics enter aquaculture systems and accumulate in farmed fish, causing toxic effects including immune disruption, oxidative stress, and genetic damage. Since farmed fish are a major food source, the buildup of microplastics in aquaculture poses a direct pathway for these particles to reach human diets.
Contribution of plastic and microplastic to global climate change and their conjoining impacts on the environment - A review
This review examines how the entire lifecycle of plastics -- from production to disposal -- contributes to greenhouse gas emissions, with plastic production projected to account for up to 13% of Earth's carbon budget by 2050. The paper also discusses how microplastics in the ocean disrupt carbon-absorbing marine organisms, creating a feedback loop that worsens both climate change and the spread of toxic plastic particles through the food chain.
Biodegradation of different types of microplastics: Molecular mechanism and degradation efficiency
This review examines how bacteria, fungi, and algae can break down different types of microplastics through their enzymes, and compares the degradation efficiency of various microbial strains. Understanding these biological breakdown pathways is important because they could be developed into practical solutions for reducing the persistent microplastic pollution that threatens ecosystems and human health.
Application of Natural Coagulants in Water Treatment: A Sustainable Alternative to Chemicals
This systematic review of 237 articles found that natural coagulants derived from plants, animals, and microorganisms can effectively remove turbidity, heavy metals, and pathogens from surface water. Plant-based coagulants like Moringa oleifera showed the most promise as sustainable, low-cost alternatives to chemical water treatment.
Toxicological Research on Nano and Microplastics in Environmental Pollution: Current Advances and Future Directions
This review summarizes existing research on how nano- and microplastics from our massive global plastic production enter aquatic environments, absorb harmful chemicals, and move through food chains into living organisms. Studies show these particles can cause brain damage, disrupt metabolism, trigger inflammation, and produce harmful oxidative stress in aquatic species, with microplastics even detected in commercial fish that people eat.
Recent trends in the application of films and coatings based on starch, cellulose, chitin, chitosan, xanthan, gellan, pullulan, Arabic gum, alginate, pectin, and carrageenan in food packaging
This review covers the latest advances in using natural polysaccharides like starch, chitosan, and cellulose to create biodegradable food packaging as an alternative to petroleum-based plastics. Replacing conventional plastic packaging with these biopolymer-based materials could help reduce the generation of microplastics that contaminate food and ultimately enter the human body.
Microplastics contamination in seaweed: impacts on human health and mitigation approaches
This review found that microplastics contaminate many types of edible seaweed, with fibers and fragments being the most common forms. Since seaweed is consumed worldwide, these microplastics can enter the human body and potentially cause oxidative damage, cell toxicity, and neurotoxicity. More research is needed to fully understand the health risks of eating microplastic-contaminated seaweed.
Microplastic Pollution in Terrestrial Ecosystems and Its Interaction with Other Soil Pollutants: A Potential Threat to Soil Ecosystem Sustainability
This review examines microplastic pollution in soils and how plastic particles interact with other pollutants like pesticides and heavy metals. About 80% of all plastic waste produced in the last 75 years has ended up in landfills or the environment, where it breaks into microplastics that alter soil health and contaminate crops. The combined effects of microplastics with other soil pollutants could threaten food safety and ultimately human health.
Microalgae in Bioplastic Production: A Comprehensive Review
Researchers reviewed microalgae as a feedstock for bioplastic production, highlighting that algal polysaccharides and polyhydroxyalkanoate content can be harnessed through blending or fermentation-based methods, with genetic engineering tools like CRISPR offering potential to boost yields toward commercial viability.
Occurrence, toxicity and remediation of polyethylene terephthalate plastics. A review
Researchers reviewed the full lifecycle of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) — the plastic used in beverage bottles and synthetic clothing — covering its environmental occurrence from groundwater to sediment, human health effects including stem cell disruption, and physical, chemical, and biological degradation pathways.
Effect of Sustainable Pretreatments on the Nutritional and Functionality of Chickpea Protein: Implication for Innovative Food Product Development
This review examines different ways to process chickpeas to improve their nutritional value and reduce compounds that block nutrient absorption. While not directly about microplastics, it discusses how food processing and packaging innovations can affect food safety and quality. The findings are relevant to understanding how food production choices intersect with concerns about contaminants in our food supply.
Artificial intelligence-driven detection of microplastics in food: A comprehensive review of sources, health risks, detection techniques, and emerging artificial intelligence solutions
This review compares traditional and advanced methods for detecting microplastics in food, finding that while older techniques provide basic information, newer technologies like infrared spectroscopy and mass spectrometry can identify much smaller particles with greater accuracy. The study highlights how artificial intelligence can significantly improve the speed and precision of microplastic detection in food products. As global plastic production continues to rise, better detection methods are essential for monitoring food safety and protecting human health.
Deciphering the Neurotoxic Burden of Micro- and Nanoplastics: From Multi-model Experimental Evidence to Therapeutic Innovation
This review summarizes research on how micro- and nanoplastics damage the brain and nervous system, covering evidence from cell studies, animal experiments, and clinical observations. Plastic particles can cross the blood-brain barrier, disrupt the gut-brain connection, cause oxidative stress, and trigger inflammation that leads to memory problems and cognitive decline. The review also discusses potential treatment strategies, making it a useful resource for understanding the brain health risks of plastic exposure.
Microplastic contamination in fish: A systematic global review of trends, health risks, and implications for consumer safety
This systematic global review summarizes research on microplastic contamination in fish, covering bioaccumulation, food chain transfer, and the role of microplastics as carriers of antibiotic-resistant bacteria and toxic chemicals. The review compares contamination levels in farmed versus wild-caught fish and finds risks vary significantly depending on the source. The findings are directly relevant to consumer safety, as people regularly consume microplastics through contaminated seafood.
Impact of Polyethylene Terephthalate Microplastics on Drosophila melanogaster Biological Profiles and Heat Shock Protein Levels
Scientists exposed fruit flies to PET microplastics and found severe cell damage in the gut, reproductive organs, and reduced fertility. The microplastics caused oxidative stress and triggered stress-response genes, with one gene (hsp83) identified as an early warning biomarker for microplastic toxicity. These findings in a well-studied model organism suggest that PET microplastics, commonly found in food and water, could pose risks to both gut health and reproductive function.
Toxicological Profile of Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) Microplastic in Ingested Drosophila melanogaster (Oregon R+) and Its Adverse Effect on Behavior and Development
Researchers fed PET microplastics to fruit flies and found that the particles accumulated in their bodies and caused dose-dependent declines in movement, climbing ability, and survival rates. Higher microplastic concentrations also slowed the flies' development from larvae to adults. While fruit flies are a simple model organism, these behavioral and developmental effects suggest that chronic microplastic ingestion could impair neurological and physiological functions in animals exposed through their diet.
Exploring the Impact of Micro-plastics on Soil Health and Ecosystem Dynamics: A Comprehensive Review
This review examines how microplastics affect soil health, finding that they alter soil structure, water retention, and the organisms that live in soil. Microplastics can carry toxic substances into soil and interact with other pollutants to amplify harmful effects on earthworms and soil microbes. Since healthy soil is essential for growing safe food, microplastic contamination of agricultural land could have long-term consequences for the food supply and human health.
Dancing with danger-how honeybees are getting affected in the web of microplastics-a review
This review summarizes research on how microplastics are affecting honeybees, finding that these particles accumulate in bee tissues including the brain, gut, and breathing tubes. Microplastic exposure can change bee behavior, weaken their immune systems, reduce body weight, and disrupt gut bacteria. Since honeybees pollinate roughly 70% of the food crops humans eat, threats to bee health from microplastics could have far-reaching effects on food security.
Microplastics in the Mediterranean Sea: Sources, Pollution Intensity, Sea Health, and Regulatory Policies
This review examines the Mediterranean Sea as a global hotspot for microplastic pollution, with concentrations approximately four times higher than those found in the North Pacific Ocean. The sea's semi-enclosed geography and surrounding population density make it especially vulnerable to plastic contamination from land-based sources. Researchers found that microplastics are present throughout the water column, from surface waters to the deep sea floor, and that marine animals ingesting them may also be exposed to harmful chemicals attached to plastic surfaces.
Implementation of Digitalized Technologies for Fashion Industry 4.0: Opportunities and Challenges
This review examines how digital technologies like artificial intelligence, blockchain, the Internet of Things, and 3D printing are being adopted by the fashion industry to improve sustainability and efficiency. Researchers identified both opportunities for reducing environmental impact through smarter manufacturing and supply chains, and challenges including high implementation costs and data privacy concerns. The study connects fashion industry digitalization to broader sustainability goals including reducing plastic and textile waste.
A Review of The Impact of Nanoparticles on Environmental Processes
This review examines how nanoparticles, including those from plastics, interact with the environment, noting they can both help clean up pollution and cause toxic harm. The impact depends on particle size, chemical properties, and how they accumulate in soil, water, and air. The findings are relevant to microplastics because plastic nanoparticles share many of the same environmental behaviors as other nanoparticles, including the ability to build up in ecosystems and potentially enter the human body.
The Crucial Nexus of Microplastics on Ecosystem and Climate Change: Types, Source, Impacts, and Transport
This review summarizes the current understanding of microplastic types, sources, environmental impacts, and transport pathways across ecosystems. It highlights that microplastics not only harm organisms through ingestion and physical damage but may also influence climate change by affecting soil carbon storage and ocean processes. The review emphasizes that microplastic pollution is a global challenge requiring coordinated solutions across waste management, policy, and consumer behavior.
Micro (nano) plastics in wastewater: A critical review on toxicity risk assessment, behaviour, environmental impact and challenges
Researchers reviewed the sources, detection methods, toxicity, environmental fate, and wastewater treatment options for micro- and nanoplastics, finding that nanoplastics are especially persistent and toxic due to their large surface area and ability to carry co-pollutants, and identifying key research gaps in quantification, degradation mechanisms, and sensor development.
Coronas of micro/nano plastics: a key determinant in their risk assessments
This review examines how micro- and nanoplastics develop surface coatings called coronas when they interact with biological and environmental substances. These corona layers, formed from proteins, organic matter, and other materials, can significantly change how plastic particles behave in the body and environment, affecting their uptake, distribution, and toxicity. The study suggests that understanding these surface coatings is essential for accurately assessing the real-world risks of plastic particle exposure.