Papers

Leaf absorption contributes to accumulation of microplastics in plants

Researchers found that plant leaves can absorb tiny plastic particles directly from the air, not just through the roots. Leafy vegetables grown outdoors in polluted areas contained measurable amounts of common plastics like PET and polystyrene. This means airborne microplastics may be entering our food supply through the plants we eat.

Impact of microplastics on plant physiology: A meta-analysis of dose, particle size, and crop type interactions in agricultural ecosystems

This meta-analysis of 37 studies found that microplastics significantly decrease plant biomass by 13% and chlorophyll content by 28%, while increasing oxidative stress by 20%. Higher doses and smaller particle sizes caused more damage, with particle size having a greater impact than concentration — and root activity was particularly sensitive to microplastic exposure.

Microplastics in three types of human arteries detected by pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS)

Researchers detected microplastics in all 17 human artery samples tested, including coronary arteries, carotid arteries, and the aorta. Arteries with atherosclerotic plaques (hardened, narrowed areas) contained significantly more microplastics than plaque-free arteries. This suggests that microplastic accumulation may be associated with atherosclerosis, the buildup of fatty deposits in arteries that is a leading cause of heart attacks and strokes.

Effects of polystyrene, polyethylene, and polypropylene microplastics on the soil-rhizosphere-plant system: Phytotoxicity, enzyme activity, and microbial community

Researchers tested how three common types of microplastics (polystyrene, polyethylene, and polypropylene) affect lettuce growth and soil health. All three types inhibited plant growth, disrupted antioxidant systems in the leaves, and altered the microbial communities in the soil around roots, with polystyrene and polypropylene causing the most disturbance.

Size-Dependent Pulmonary Toxicity and Whole-Body Distribution of Inhaled Micro/Nanoplastic Particles in Male Mice from Chronic Exposure

Researchers exposed mice to airborne micro- and nanoplastic particles through normal breathing over an extended period and found the highest accumulation in the lungs, followed by the blood and spleen. Surprisingly, the larger 1-micrometer microplastics caused more severe lung damage than the smaller 80-nanometer particles, triggering inflammation, cell death, and scarring. These findings highlight that breathing in airborne plastic particles poses real health risks, with particle size playing an important role in the type of damage caused.

Microplastic pollution in terrestrial ecosystems: Global implications and sustainable solutions

This review examines microplastic pollution in terrestrial ecosystems, an area that has received far less attention than ocean plastic pollution despite soil being a major sink for these contaminants. The study covers how microplastics interact with other soil pollutants, affect plant growth and soil health, and discusses both policy solutions and practical removal methods to reduce the amount of microplastics that enter the food chain.

Plastic food? Energy compensation of zebrafish (Danio rerio) after long-term exposure to polylactic acid biomicroplastics

Zebrafish exposed to biodegradable PLA (polylactic acid) microplastics for 90 days accumulated more plastic in their guts than fish exposed to conventional PET plastic, and suffered more intestinal damage. Although the fish partially compensated by using the PLA breakdown products for energy, the study shows that bio-based plastics still carry meaningful ecological risks for aquatic organisms that can enter our food chain.

Research progress on the origin, fate, impacts and harm of microplastics and antibiotic resistance genes in wastewater treatment plants

This review explores how microplastics and antibiotic resistance genes interact in wastewater treatment plants, where they can survive treatment and enter the environment together. The concern for human health is that these contaminants can travel through the food chain, potentially increasing illness from antibiotic-resistant infections.

Effects of degradable and non-degradable microplastics and oxytetracycline co-exposure on soil N2O and CO2 emissions

Microplastics release from face masks: Characteristics, influential factors, and potential risks

This review found that disposable face masks, used widely since the COVID-19 pandemic, release microplastics -- mostly transparent fibers smaller than 1 millimeter -- especially after UV exposure, extended wear, and disinfection for reuse. The health risk of inhaling these mask-derived microplastics directly into the lungs should not be overlooked, particularly for healthcare workers and others who wear masks for long periods.

Microplastic biofilm may shape microbial community enriched with antibiotic resistance genes to enhance nitrogen transformation under antibiotic stress

This study found that biofilms growing on PVC microplastics in water helped remove nitrogen pollutants but also concentrated antibiotic resistance genes, with the same bacteria often carrying both pollution-cleaning and drug-resistance capabilities. The findings raise concerns that microplastic pollution in waterways could accelerate the spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, which poses a growing threat to human health.

Effects of microplastics on chemo-resistance and tumorigenesis of colorectal cancer

For the first time, researchers confirmed the presence of microplastics in human colorectal cancer tissue and showed in animal models that microplastics increased cancer rates and made tumors more resistant to chemotherapy drugs. The study found that microplastics trigger a cell survival mechanism called autophagy that helps cancer cells resist treatment, suggesting plastic pollution could complicate cancer outcomes.

Positively Charged Nanoplastics Destruct the Structure of the PCK1 Enzyme, Promote the Aerobic Gycolysis Pathway, and Induce Hepatic Tumor Risks

Positively charged nanoplastics promoted liver tumor growth in zebrafish and human cancer cells, while negatively charged nanoplastics did not. The positive charge disrupts a key enzyme (PCK1) involved in sugar metabolism, pushing cells toward the energy pathway preferred by cancer cells. This finding suggests that the surface chemistry of nanoplastics in the environment may influence their cancer-promoting potential.

Influence of soil microplastic contamination and cadmium toxicity on the growth, physiology, and root growth traits of Triticum aestivum L.

Researchers grew wheat plants in soil contaminated with polyethylene microplastics, the toxic heavy metal cadmium, or both, finding that combined exposure caused the worst damage — shrinking root area, reducing gas exchange in leaves, and lowering key growth indicators. These findings raise concerns about crop yields in farmland where plastic pollution and heavy metal contamination overlap, which is increasingly common.

Continuous oral exposure to micro- and nanoplastics induced gut microbiota dysbiosis, intestinal barrier and immune dysfunction in adult mice

Researchers fed mice micro- and nanoplastics at environmentally relevant levels and found significant gut damage, including disrupted gut bacteria, weakened intestinal barriers, and reduced immune function. The ratio of beneficial to harmful gut bacteria shifted, and immune cells in the gut decreased. Importantly, the duration of exposure and the size of plastic particles mattered more than the amount consumed, suggesting even low-level long-term exposure could harm gut health.

Sources and identification of microplastics in soils

This review summarizes where microplastics in soil come from and how scientists detect them. Major sources include agricultural plastic film, sewage sludge spread on fields, fertilizers, and irrigation water. The paper discusses methods for separating and identifying soil microplastics, which is important because understanding soil contamination helps assess how much plastic may be entering our food from the ground up.

Occurrence of Polyethylene Terephthalate and Polycarbonate Microplastics in Infant and Adult Feces

Researchers measured microplastic levels in the stool of infants and adults in New York and found that infants had significantly higher concentrations of PET microplastics, about ten times more than adults. The likely sources include plastic baby bottles, food packaging, and toys that infants frequently put in their mouths. This study provides some of the first direct evidence that babies are exposed to more microplastics than adults, raising questions about potential health effects during early development.

Polyethylene microplastic-induced microbial shifts affected greenhouse gas emissions during litter decomposition in coastal wetland sediments

Scientists found that polyethylene microplastics in coastal wetland sediments significantly reduced greenhouse gas emissions during plant litter decomposition, cutting methane by 41% and carbon dioxide by 26%. This happened because the microplastics changed the communities of bacteria, fungi, and archaea responsible for breaking down organic matter. While reduced greenhouse gases may sound positive, the disruption to natural decomposition processes could have unpredictable long-term effects on coastal ecosystems.

Microplastics regulate soil microbial activities: Evidence from catalase, dehydrogenase, and fluorescein diacetate hydrolase

This review examines how microplastics affect the activity of soil microorganisms, finding that results range widely from boosting to suppressing microbial function depending on the type, size, and age of the plastic, as well as soil conditions. Smaller nanoplastics can directly damage microbial cells, while larger microplastics alter soil chemistry and the toxicity of co-existing pollutants. Since soil microbes drive processes critical to agriculture and food production, these disruptions could have downstream effects on human food systems.

Microplastics meet invasive plants: Unraveling the ecological hazards to agroecosystems

This study examined how microplastic contamination in soil combines with invasive plant species to affect rice crops. The combination of both stressors caused greater changes in rice metabolism and antioxidant responses than either stressor alone. These findings highlight how microplastic pollution in agricultural soil can interact with other environmental challenges to threaten food safety and crop health.

A review of human and animals exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons: Health risk and adverse effects, photo-induced toxicity and regulating effect of microplastics

This review examines the health risks of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), toxic chemicals from burning fossil fuels, and how microplastics can change their behavior in the environment. Microplastics absorb PAHs on their surface, potentially carrying these cancer-causing chemicals into organisms that ingest the contaminated particles. The combined toxicity of PAHs attached to microplastics may be greater than either pollutant alone, increasing risks to both wildlife and human health.

Planting Enhances Soil Resistance to Microplastics: Evidence from Carbon Emissions and Dissolved Organic Matter Stability

Researchers found that growing plants in soil contaminated with microplastics helped protect the soil ecosystem compared to unplanted soil. The root systems of plants stabilized the soil's microbial communities and reduced the carbon emissions caused by microplastic pollution, suggesting that maintaining plant cover could be one strategy to limit the environmental damage from microplastics in farmland.

Application of organoid technology in the human health risk assessment of microplastics: A review of progresses and challenges

This review examines how organoid technology -- miniature lab-grown versions of human organs made from stem cells -- can be used to study the health effects of microplastics more accurately than traditional animal testing. Organoids of the gut, lung, brain, liver, and other organs can better predict how microplastics affect human tissues, potentially accelerating our understanding of the real health risks these particles pose.

Deciphering the inhibition mechanisms of microplastics on the full-stage sludge anaerobic digestion via enrichment to anaerobic microbes and toxicity of released compounds

This study found that microplastics in sewage sludge significantly interfere with the waste treatment process by reducing the activity of key microorganisms needed to break down waste. More than half of the negative effect came from toxic chemicals released when microplastic particles rub against sludge, and the disrupted treatment also increased the risk of spreading antibiotic-resistant bacteria.