Papers

D-Limonene: Promising and Sustainable Natural Bioactive Compound

This review covers D-limonene, a natural compound found in citrus essential oils, which shows promise as an antimicrobial and anti-parasitic agent that could replace some synthetic chemicals. While not directly about microplastics, the development of natural bioactive alternatives is relevant to reducing reliance on plastic-packaged chemical products and their associated environmental contamination.

Transforming Healthcare with Nanomedicine: A SWOT Analysis of Drug Delivery Innovation

This review provides a strategic analysis of nanomedicine for drug delivery, highlighting its promise for targeted treatments but also its challenges around safety, cost, and regulation. While not focused on microplastics directly, nanomedicine research shares relevant technology for understanding how nano-sized particles, including nanoplastics, interact with human cells and tissues. The review emphasizes that more research is needed on the biological effects of nanoparticles in the body.

On the degradation of (micro)plastics: Degradation methods, influencing factors, environmental impacts

This review provides a comprehensive overview of methods for degrading microplastics, including photodegradation, thermal degradation, and biodegradation, along with the factors that influence each process. Researchers found that while several degradation approaches show promise in laboratory settings, no mature and effective method is yet available for large-scale engineering applications or natural environments. The study also discusses how degradation products of microplastics can themselves pose environmental risks.

Incubation habitats and aging treatments affect the formation of biofilms on polypropylene microplastics

Researchers studied how aging treatments and different aquatic habitats (marine, estuary, and river) affect biofilm formation on polypropylene microplastics. The study found that aging processes damaged the surface structure of microplastics and increased oxygen-containing groups, which enhanced microbial colonization. The results suggest that both environmental conditions and plastic degradation status significantly influence the microbial communities that form on microplastic surfaces.

Effects of different temperatures on Leiocassis longirostris gill structure and intestinal microbial composition

Researchers exposed a freshwater catfish species to cold (4°C), normal (26°C), and hot (32°C) water temperatures and found that both extremes damaged gill tissue and disrupted the balance of gut bacteria, with cold stress causing a larger shift toward opportunistic pathogens. The findings reveal how temperature stress compromises fish immune health, relevant as climate change increases the frequency of extreme weather events.

Research progress of nanoplastics in freshwater

This review summarized the environmental fate, extraction methods, characterization techniques, and biological effects of nanoplastics in freshwater systems, noting that NPs' small size, high surface area, and cell-penetrating ability make them potentially more harmful than microplastics despite being less studied.

Spatial and seasonal variations in biofilm formation on microplastics in coastal waters

Polypropylene, polyethylene, polylactic acid, and glass particles exposed in the Yellow Sea across seasons showed that biofilm biomass and community composition (diatoms, bacteria) varied significantly by season and functional zone, with seawater temperature as the main driver.

Microplastic toxicity: mechanisms, assessment methods, and future research directions

This review synthesizes current knowledge on microplastic toxicity mechanisms, integrating physical, chemical, and biological pathways into a unified framework. Researchers examined assessment methods across aquatic organisms, terrestrial species, and human cell models, identifying critical knowledge gaps and recommending standardized approaches for future microplastic toxicity research.

The Aging Behavior of Polyvinyl Chloride Microplastics by UV/Sodium Percarbonate Oxidation: Efficiency and Mechanism

Researchers investigated how UV-activated sodium percarbonate breaks down PVC microplastics, finding effective dechlorination and fragmentation after 35 hours of treatment. The study identified hydroxyl and carbonate radicals as the primary agents driving the aging process, providing insights into how advanced oxidation could be used to treat microplastic-contaminated wastewater.

Research Progress of Microplastics in Freshwater Sediments in China

This review synthesizes Chinese research on microplastic pollution in freshwater sediments, covering detection methods, contamination levels across river systems, sources, and the potential ecological and human health implications.

A simple and rapid preparation of Au-Ag alloy nanourchins flexible membrane for ultrasensitive SERS detection of microplastics in water environment

Researchers fabricated flexible gold-silver alloy nanourchins on a membrane substrate and demonstrated their use as a SERS sensor for rapid, sensitive detection of microplastics in water, achieving detection of multiple polymer types at low concentrations without complex sample preparation.

Aging behavior of polyvinyl chloride microplastics in the UV/CaSO3 system under reducing environment: Key role of sulfite radicals

Distribution characteristics of microplastics in wastewater treatment plants in mega cities–the case study of Chengdu City

Researchers studied microplastic distribution and removal across wastewater treatment plant processes in China, finding that WWTPs intercept large quantities of MPs before discharge but that residual concentrations in effluent still represent a significant pathway for environmental MP release.

In vitro degradation behavior of oriented microcellular poly(L-lactic acid) biomimetic materials

This study characterized the in vitro hydrolytic degradation behavior of oriented microcellular poly(L-lactic acid) biomimetic materials, finding that molecular chain orientation and cellular microstructure influence the rate and pattern of degradation.

Vertical distribution of microplastics in sediment columns along the coastline of China

Sediment column samples collected from 11 provinces along China's coastline revealed that microplastic pollution decreases with depth and is more diverse in vertical profiles than in surface sediments, with fibers dominating. Estuarine and coastal areas showed higher contamination than mangrove reserves.

Short‐term effects of mineral and combined mineral‐organic fertilization in soil microbial communities

A one-year fertilization trial in a Qinghai-Tibet Plateau greenhouse found that both mineral and combined mineral-organic fertilization increased bacterial richness and decreased fungal diversity compared to unfertilized soil, with available phosphorus as the primary driver of microbial community structure changes.

A comprehensive study on the performance and mechanism of microplastics removal by enhanced coagulation methods

Polysaccharides from Brasenia schreberi with Great Antioxidant Ability and the Potential Application in Yogurt

This study optimized the extraction and characterized the antioxidant properties of polysaccharides from Brasenia schreberi, finding strong antioxidant activity with potential applications as a functional food ingredient in products such as yogurt.

Microplastics in soils: a review of possible sources, analytical methods and ecological impacts

This review of over 60 studies examines the sources, global distribution, and analytical methods for microplastics in soil, finding that agricultural soils are particularly contaminated via sewage sludge application, plastic mulch, and atmospheric deposition. The authors call for standardized extraction and identification protocols to enable cross-study comparisons.

Evaluation and Design of Reusable Takeaway Containers Based on the AHP–FCE Model

This study applied an analytic hierarchy process combined with fuzzy comprehensive evaluation to systematically assess and optimize the design of reusable takeaway food containers, identifying durability, cleanliness verification, and user convenience as the highest-priority design requirements.

Microplastic distribution in an urban-influenced plateau lake: A case study of Qionghai Lake, China

Microplastic pollution in the surface sediments collected from Sishili Bay, North Yellow Sea, China

Researchers investigated microplastic pollution in surface sediments from 28 stations in Sishili Bay in the North Yellow Sea, China, finding an average abundance of 499.76 items per kilogram dry weight with fibers dominating and eight polymer types identified including rayon and polyester.

Characteristics and spatiotemporal distribution of microplastics in sediments from a typical mariculture pond area in Qingduizi Bay, North Yellow Sea, China

Researchers characterized the abundance, morphology, and spatiotemporal distribution of microplastics in sediments from mariculture ponds and offshore areas of Qingduizi Bay in northern China across winter and summer. Mariculture pond sediments had notably higher microplastic concentrations than offshore areas, with transparent polyethylene terephthalate fibres dominating.

Biodegradable and non-biodegradable microplastics on methane emissions from sewer sediments: changes in enzyme activity and microbial communities