Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Concentration dependent toxicity of microplastics to marine microalgae

Researchers exposed the marine microalga Chlorella sp. to polystyrene microplastics at concentrations of 10 and 50 mg/L, finding that even low concentrations inhibited growth and disrupted photosynthesis, while higher concentrations caused more pronounced oxidative stress.

2025 E3S Web of Conferences
Article Tier 2

Comparative assessment of MP effects on pigment composition and lipid profiles in three marine microalgae

Researchers exposed three marine microalgae species to polyethylene and polypropylene microplastics and found that the particles altered pigment composition and lipid profiles in species-specific ways. Microplastic exposure generally reduced photosynthetic pigments and shifted fatty acid profiles, with effects varying depending on the polymer type and concentration ratio. The study suggests that microplastic pollution could disrupt the biochemistry of ecologically and commercially important microalgae at the base of marine food webs.

2026 Chemosphere
Review Tier 2

Effects of microplastics on microalgae populations: A critical review

This critical review examines how microplastics affect microalgae populations, which are essential primary producers at the base of aquatic food webs. Researchers found that microplastics can reduce algal growth, impair photosynthesis, and cause oxidative stress, with effects varying by plastic type, size, and concentration. The study highlights that harm to microalgae from plastic pollution could have cascading effects throughout entire aquatic ecosystems.

2019 The Science of The Total Environment 452 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of microplastics on freshwater and marine microalgae

This book chapter reviews the effects of microplastics on freshwater and marine microalgae, covering how different plastic types and sizes affect algal growth, photosynthesis, and reproduction. Microalgae form the base of aquatic food webs, so plastic-induced disruption to algal communities could have cascading effects throughout ecosystems.

2020 IWA Publishing eBooks 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of nanoplastics on microalgae and their trophic transfer along the food chain: recent advances and perspectives

This review summarized evidence on how nanoplastics affect microalgae — including growth inhibition, oxidative stress, and altered photosynthesis — and examined trophic transfer of nanoplastics up the food chain, finding that toxicity depended on NP concentration, size, and surface charge.

2021 Environmental Science Processes & Impacts 41 citations
Article Tier 2

Responses of different species of marine microalgae and their community to gear-derived microplastics

Researchers tested how microplastics from fishing gear affected four species of marine microalgae and found that smaller particles were more toxic, significantly slowing algae growth and damaging their cells. When introduced to a mixed algae community, the microplastics shifted which species dominated and actually increased overall community diversity. Since microalgae are the foundation of the ocean food web, these changes could ripple through marine ecosystems and affect the seafood humans consume.

2025 Water Research 6 citations
Review Tier 2

Microplastics – A major contaminant in marine macro algal population: Review

This review identified the occurrence and characteristics of microplastics in marine macroalgae, highlighting macroalgae as both indicators of MP pollution and potential entry points for microplastics into marine food webs.

2023 Marine Environmental Research 17 citations
Article Tier 2

Implication of microplastic toxicity on functioning of microalgae in aquatic system

This review examined how microplastics interact with and affect microalgae, which serve as primary producers in aquatic ecosystems. Researchers analyzed the toxic effects of both single and mixed plastic particles on microalgae cells, including impacts on photosynthesis, growth, and cellular function. The study highlights that microplastic toxicity to microalgae could have cascading effects throughout aquatic food webs.

2022 Environmental Pollution 72 citations
Article Tier 2

Do microplastics affect marine ecosystem productivity?

This study estimated the potential impact of microplastics on marine ecosystem productivity (algae and zooplankton growth) by synthesizing lab toxicity data. The analysis suggested that current environmental microplastic concentrations may reduce primary productivity in some ocean regions, with knock-on effects up the food chain.

2018 Marine Pollution Bulletin 73 citations
Article Tier 2

Ecotoxicity of micro- and nanoplastics on aquatic algae: Facts, challenges, and future opportunities

This review provides a comprehensive assessment of how micro- and nanoplastics harm aquatic algae, which form the base of ocean and freshwater food chains. The toxic effects include reduced growth, oxidative stress, and disrupted photosynthesis, with nanoplastics generally causing more damage than larger particles. Since algae support the entire aquatic food web, their decline from plastic pollution could reduce the quality and safety of fish and shellfish consumed by people.

2023 Journal of Environmental Management 45 citations
Article Tier 2

The microplastic menace: a critical review of its impact on marine photoautotrophs and their environment

This review examines how microplastics interact with marine macro- and microalgae, covering environmental prevalence, genetic responses to MP exposure, and mitigation strategies. It finds that annual introduction of 28.5 million tons of plastic into oceans threatens marine primary producers and indirectly affects marine food webs and human health through the consumption of contaminated seafood.

2025 Environmental Science and Pollution Research
Meta Analysis Tier 1

Effect and mechanism of microplastics exposure against microalgae: Photosynthesis and oxidative stress

Meta-analysis of 55 studies (835 endpoints) found that microplastics reduce chlorophyll-a content and hinder electron transfer in microalgae photosynthetic systems, causing oxidative stress damage. Effects were concentration- and size-dependent, with freshwater microalgae more susceptible than marine species.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 54 citations
Meta Analysis Tier 1

Evaluating physiological responses of microalgae towards environmentally coexisting microplastics: A meta-analysis

A meta-analysis of 52 studies found that microplastics inhibit microalgal growth and photosynthesis and induce oxidative damage, though microalgae can recover over time. Cyanobacteria are more vulnerable than green algae, and the relative size of microplastics to algal cells governs the mechanism of impact, while aged versus pristine microplastics have opposite effects on extracellular polymeric substance and microcystin production.

2024 Journal of Hazardous Materials 9 citations
Article Tier 2

Micro/nanoplastic-induced stress in microalgae: Latest laboratory evidence and knowledge gaps

This review compiled laboratory evidence on how micro- and nanoplastics stress microalgae — the base of aquatic food webs — covering effects on photosynthesis, growth, oxidative stress, and toxin production. The authors identify key knowledge gaps including environmentally realistic concentrations and combined contaminant effects.

2025 Aquatic Toxicology
Review Tier 2

Micro Plastics in The Marine Environment: A Review of Their Effects on Marine Organisms and Ecosystems

This review examines the effects of microplastics on marine organisms and ecosystems, summarizing evidence for MP ingestion across trophic levels, physical and chemical harm to marine life, and the pathways through which marine MP pollution threatens biodiversity and fisheries.

2025 International Journal of Latest Technology in Engineering Management & Applied Science
Article Tier 2

Effect of microplastics exposure on the photosynthesis system of freshwater algae

Researchers investigated how polypropylene and polyvinyl chloride microplastics affect the photosynthesis system of freshwater algae and found that both types reduced chlorophyll content and impaired photosynthetic efficiency. The damage was concentration-dependent and worsened over the growth period. The study highlights that microplastic pollution in freshwater can harm algae, which form the base of aquatic food chains.

2019 Journal of Hazardous Materials 416 citations
Article Tier 2

Impacts of Microplastics on Photosynthetic Efficiency and Pigment Composition in Chlorella pyrenoidosa

Researchers evaluated how polyethylene and polystyrene microplastics at different concentrations affect photosynthesis and pigment composition in the microalga Chlorella pyrenoidosa over four days. They found that microplastic exposure impaired photosynthetic efficiency and altered chlorophyll and carotenoid levels. The study highlights the potential for microplastic pollution to disrupt primary producers at the base of aquatic food webs.

2024 European Journal of Theoretical and Applied Sciences 2 citations
Review Tier 2

Microplastics – An emerging contaminants for algae. Critical review and perspectives

This review examines how microplastics and nanoplastics affect algae, which are the foundation of aquatic food chains. Microplastics can reduce algae growth, disrupt photosynthesis, and cause oxidative stress, with smaller nanoplastics being more harmful. Since algae are at the base of the food web, damage to them can ripple through ecosystems and ultimately affect the seafood that humans consume.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 69 citations
Article Tier 2

The Ecotoxicological Effects of Microplastics on Primary Producers in the Marine Environment

This review examines how microplastics harm marine primary producers including microalgae, seagrasses, and coral reefs. Microplastics concentrate 2-3 times higher in vegetated marine areas, damage algal cells, and have been linked to roughly 46% of coral reef mortality through disease outbreaks. These disruptions threaten the foundation of marine food webs.

2020 Journal of Fisheries Science 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Interactive adverse effects of low-density polyethylene microplastics on marine microalga Chaetoceros calcitrans

Researchers examined the toxicological effects of low-density polyethylene microplastics on the marine microalga Chaetoceros calcitrans. They found concentration-dependent inhibition of algal growth up to 85 percent, along with reduced photosynthetic efficiency and significant oxidative stress responses. The microplastics physically adhered to algal cell walls, causing observable structural damage, suggesting that polyethylene microplastic pollution may pose serious risks to marine phytoplankton at the base of ocean food chains.

2022 Chemosphere 58 citations
Article Tier 2

Research advances on impacts micro/nanoplastics and their carried pollutants on algae in aquatic ecosystems: A review

This review examines how micro- and nanoplastics harm algae, which are the foundation of aquatic food chains, by slowing growth, reducing photosynthesis, and damaging cells. The effects are worse when microplastics carry other pollutants on their surfaces, creating a combined toxic effect. Since algae support the entire aquatic food web, damage to these organisms can ripple upward through fish and shellfish to affect the safety of seafood consumed by humans.

2023 Aquatic Toxicology 39 citations
Article Tier 2

Current understanding and challenges for aquatic primary producers in a world with rising micro- and nano-plastic levels

Researchers conducted a quantitative analysis of published studies on how micro- and nanoplastics affect aquatic primary producers like microalgae. They found that microplastics generally inhibited algal growth, but typically only at concentrations much higher than those currently found in the environment, with positively charged particles being the most toxic. The study highlights that the effects on photosynthesis and metabolism vary greatly depending on particle properties and algal species.

2020 Journal of Hazardous Materials 127 citations
Article Tier 2

Do plastic particles affect microalgal photosynthesis and growth?

This study investigated whether polystyrene particles of different sizes and charges affect growth and photosynthesis in three marine microalgae species. The results showed that charged particles caused greater inhibition of algal growth at the lowest concentrations tested, suggesting that plastic particle charge and size influence their toxicity to primary producers at the base of marine food chains.

2016 Aquatic toxicology (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
Article Tier 2

Micro/nano-plastics and microalgae in aquatic environment: Influence factor, interaction, and molecular mechanisms.

This review examined the interactions between micro/nanoplastics and microalgae in aquatic environments, summarizing how plastic particle size, surface chemistry, and co-pollutants influence algal toxicity through oxidative stress, photosynthesis inhibition, and gene expression changes.

2024 The Science of the total environment