Papers

61,005 results
|
Article Tier 2

Label-FreeQuantification of Nanoplastic–CellMembrane Interaction by Single Cell Deformation Plasmonic Imaging

Researchers developed a label-free quantitative method called Single Cell Deformation Plasmonic Imaging to study nanoplastic interactions with cell membranes, enabling precise measurement of how nanoplastic particles disrupt cellular functions at the membrane level.

2025 Figshare
Article Tier 2

Probing Friction and Adhesion of Individual Nanoplastic Particles

Using atomic force microscopy, researchers directly measured the friction and adhesion properties of individual nanoplastic particles on surfaces. These physical measurements provide insights into how nanoplastics interact with biological surfaces, which is relevant to understanding how they penetrate cells and tissues.

2020 The Journal of Physical Chemistry C 15 citations
Article Tier 2

Nanomechanical Atomic Force Microscopy to Probe Cellular Microplastics Uptake and Distribution

Researchers used atomic force microscopy in a specialized nanomechanical mode to visualize how human skin cells take up and distribute polystyrene microplastics. They were able to distinguish between particles attached to the cell surface and those internalized within the cell, detecting particles as small as 500 nanometers. The study demonstrates a powerful new technique for studying how plastic particles interact with human cells at the nanoscale.

2022 International Journal of Molecular Sciences 63 citations
Article Tier 2

Photoinduced Force Microscopy as an Efficient Method Towards the Detection of Nanoplastics

Researchers demonstrated photoinduced force microscopy as an effective method for detecting and chemically characterizing individual nanoplastic particles, overcoming limitations of conventional techniques that lack either sufficient spatial resolution or spectroscopic capability at the nanoscale.

2021 Chemistry - Methods 30 citations
Article Tier 2

The role of microplastics in microalgae cells aggregation: A study at the molecular scale using atomic force microscopy

Atomic force microscopy was used at the molecular scale to study how microplastics interact with microalgae cells and affect their aggregation, finding that plastic particles altered cell surface properties and promoted clumping. The results suggest that microplastics can disrupt the normal behavior of primary producers at the base of aquatic food chains.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 67 citations
Article Tier 2

Understanding the transformations of nanoplastic onto phospholipid bilayers: Mechanism, microscopic interaction and cytotoxicity assessment

Researchers used molecular dynamics simulations to model how five types of nanoplastics (PVC, PS, PLA, PP, PET) interact with cell membrane lipid bilayers, finding that van der Waals forces dominate uptake and that nanoplastic accumulation reduces membrane thickness in a way that correlates with cytotoxicity.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 22 citations
Article Tier 2

Direct Quantification of Nanoplastics Neurotoxicity by Single‐Vesicle Electrochemistry

Using a precise electrochemical technique to measure individual brain cell vesicles, researchers provided the first direct evidence that nanoplastics disrupt how neurons store and release chemical messengers. Nanoplastic exposure reduced the amount of neurotransmitters in cell vesicles and impaired the process of releasing them during signaling. The study offers a detailed molecular-level look at how nanoplastics may interfere with brain cell communication.

2023 Angewandte Chemie International Edition 25 citations
Article Tier 2

Investigation of Soft Matter Nanomechanics by Atomic Force Microscopy and Optical Tweezers: A Comprehensive Review

This review covers how atomic force microscopy and optical tweezers are used to measure the mechanical properties of soft materials like cells, proteins, and gels at the nanoscale. While not directly about microplastics, these tools are increasingly used to study how nano- and microplastic particles interact with cell membranes and biological tissues. Understanding these interactions at the molecular level helps explain how microplastics cause physical damage to cells.

2023 Nanomaterials 138 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics destabilize lipid membranes by mechanical stretching

Researchers discovered a physical mechanism by which microplastics can damage cell membranes through mechanical stretching, even without chemical toxicity. Using model lipid membranes, they showed that microplastic particles partially engulfed by cell membranes create mechanical tension that destabilizes the membrane structure. The study reveals a fundamental way that microplastics could harm living cells, suggesting that physical interactions at the cellular level may be just as important as chemical effects.

2021 Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 161 citations
Article Tier 2

Cell Response to Nanoplastics and Their Carrier Effects Tracked Real-Timely with Machine Learning-Driven Smart Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy Slides

Researchers developed a novel smart sensor slide that can track in real time how living cells respond to nanoplastic exposure at the molecular level. Using specially designed core-shell plastic nanoparticles with embedded tracking signals, they could monitor each stage from initial cell contact through absorption and eventual cell damage. The technology offers a powerful new tool for studying how nanoplastics interact with human cells and carry other pollutants into the body.

2025 Analytical Chemistry 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Perturbation of Nanoplastics on Biomembranes: Molecular Insights from Neutron Scattering

Scientists found that tiny plastic particles called nanoplastics can seriously damage cell membranes, which are the protective barriers around our cells. The plastic particles caused membranes to break apart and get thinner, though some natural cell types were more resistant to damage than others. This research helps us understand why the growing amount of plastic pollution in our environment and food could pose health risks to humans.

2026
Article Tier 2

Effects of polyethylene microplastics on cell membranes: A combined study of experiments and molecular dynamics simulations

Researchers combined laboratory experiments with molecular dynamics simulations to study how polyethylene microplastics interact with cell membranes. They found that nanoscale plastic particles can penetrate and disrupt cell membrane structure, causing leakage and potentially leading to cell damage. The study provides a detailed molecular-level understanding of one of the fundamental ways microplastics may harm living cells.

2022 Journal of Hazardous Materials 141 citations
Article Tier 2

Direct Quantification of Nanoplastics Neurotoxicity by Single‐Vesicle Electrochemistry

Using single-vesicle electrochemistry, this study provides the first direct measurement of how nanoplastics disrupt neurotransmitter release at the level of individual nerve cells. Polystyrene nanoplastics taken up by neurons disrupted the cellular machinery controlling how vesicles fuse and release catecholamines (like dopamine and norepinephrine), reducing both the amount of neurotransmitter released and the frequency of release events. These findings are concerning because they suggest nanoplastic exposure could interfere with normal brain signaling at concentrations that don't immediately kill cells.

2023 Angewandte Chemie 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Entry of microparticles into giant lipid vesicles by optical tweezers

Using optical tweezers to apply precise forces, this study showed that microparticles can be pushed through lipid membrane vesicles — a model for cell membranes — when external mechanical force is applied and membrane tension is low. The findings provide mechanistic insight into how microplastics might physically cross cell membranes and enter cells, a key step in understanding potential cellular toxicity.

2023 Physical review. E 7 citations
Article Tier 2

Can Nanoplastics Alter Cell Membranes?

Researchers used molecular dynamics simulations to show that polyethylene nanoplastics dissolve into the hydrophobic core of lipid bilayers as disentangled polymer chains, inducing structural and dynamic changes that alter vital cell membrane functions and may result in cell death.

2019 ChemPhysChem 137 citations
Article Tier 2

Interaction of polyethylene nanoplastics with the plasma, endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi apparatus, lysosome and endosome membranes: A molecular dynamics study

Researchers used computer simulations to study how polyethylene nanoplastics interact with five types of cell membranes in the human body, finding that the plastic particles spontaneously insert themselves into the fatty inner layer of membranes and disrupt normal membrane flexibility. These atomic-level findings help explain how nanoplastics may cause cell damage from the inside.

2025 Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Development of single-cell ICP-TOFMS to measure nanoplastics association with human cells

Researchers developed a new single-cell analytical technique using ICP-TOFMS to measure how nanoplastic particles associate with individual human cells. This method enables detection of nanoplastics at the single-cell level, offering a more precise way to study how these tiny plastic particles interact with human tissues. The approach addresses a critical gap in understanding nanoplastic exposure and uptake in biological systems.

2023 Environmental Science Nano 20 citations
Article Tier 2

Nanoplastic ShapeEffects on Lipid Bilayer Permeabilization

Researchers investigated how nanoplastic shape affects lipid bilayer permeabilisation, demonstrating that morphologically diverse environmental nanoplastics interact with cell membranes in ways that differ substantially from the uniform polystyrene nanospheres typically used in laboratory studies.

2025 Figshare
Article Tier 2

Probing Primary and Mechanically Degraded Nanoplastic Particles via Atomic Force Microscopy

Nanoplastics — the smallest plastic particles — are difficult to characterize because of their tiny size, but atomic force microscopy (AFM) can probe their physical and mechanical properties at the nanoscale. This study used AFM to measure the size, shape, roughness, and adhesiveness of three types of nanoplastic particles (melamine formaldehyde, polystyrene, and PMMA) both before and after mechanical degradation. Understanding how nanoplastics change their shape and stickiness as they fragment is important for predicting how they will behave and accumulate in biological tissues and the environment.

2025 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Label-Free Live-Cell Imaging of Internalized Microplastics and Cytoplasmic Organelles with Multicolor CARS Microscopy

Label-free multicolor coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CARS) microscopy was used to simultaneously visualize internalized microplastics and cellular organelles in live cells without requiring fluorescent staining. The approach enables real-time tracking of plastic particle interactions with intracellular structures, offering new insight into how microplastics behave inside human cells.

2022 Environmental Science & Technology 18 citations
Article Tier 2

Nanoparticle-cell Membrane Interactions: Adsorption Kinetics and the Monolayer Response

This thesis investigated how engineered nanoparticles interact with cell membranes, including adsorption kinetics and how membranes respond to particle contact. Understanding nanoparticle-membrane interactions is directly relevant to how nanoplastics may enter cells and cause biological harm.

2019
Article Tier 2

Quantitative Analysis of Nanoplastics in Single Cells by Subcellular Chromatography

This study developed a novel subcellular chromatography method capable of quantifying nanoplastic particles in different regions of individual living cells with femtolitre-to-attolitre precision. By directly sampling and separating intracellular cytoplasm, the technique revealed how nanoplastics distribute across different cellular compartments. This advance in analytical capability is important for understanding the subcellular fate of nanoplastics and the spatially specific toxicological mechanisms they may trigger inside cells.

2023 Analytical Chemistry 12 citations
Article Tier 2

Microparticle Assembly Pathways on Lipid Membranes

Researchers studied how short-ranged adhesive forces between microparticles and model lipid membranes drive membrane-mediated particle assembly, using confocal microscopy to observe attachment, clustering, and tubule formation relevant to understanding microplastic interactions with biological membranes.

2017 Biophysical Journal 32 citations
Article Tier 2

Single-nanoplastic detection based on plasmon-coupled scattering microscopy

Researchers developed plasmon-coupled scattering microscopy (PCSM) as a new method for detecting and characterising individual nanoplastic particles down to single-particle sensitivity. The technique offers higher resolution and lower cost than traditional approaches and was validated against known nanoplastic standards.

2025 Sensors and Actuators A Physical