Papers

61,005 results
|
Article Tier 2

Atmospheric Microplastics: Perspectives on Origin, Abundances, Ecological and Health Risks

This review summarizes current knowledge about microplastics in the atmosphere, including their sources, how far they travel, and potential health effects from inhalation. Researchers found that airborne microplastics can carry toxic chemicals deep into the respiratory system and may contribute to respiratory problems and other health concerns. The study emphasizes that atmospheric microplastic pollution remains poorly understood due to a lack of standardized measurement methods.

2023 Environmental Science and Pollution Research 22 citations
Article Tier 2

Atmospheric Microplastics and Human Health: Sources, Exposure, and Risks

This review systematically summarizes the sources, distribution, and health implications of atmospheric microplastics in both indoor and outdoor air. The study highlights growing evidence that inhaled microplastics can enter the human body and pose potential risks to the respiratory system, while identifying key limitations and uncertainties in current exposure assessment methods.

2026 Applied and Computational Engineering
Article Tier 2

Atmospheric microplastics: exposure, toxicity, and detrimental health effects

This review summarizes what is known about microplastics in the air, including their sources, how they travel, and their effects on human health when inhaled or swallowed. Airborne microplastics come from synthetic textiles, road dust, construction materials, and industrial processes, and can trigger inflammation and oxidative stress in the lungs and other organs. The authors conclude that atmospheric microplastics represent an underappreciated route of human exposure that deserves more research and regulation.

2023 RSC Advances 95 citations
Review Tier 2

Airborne microplastics and their impact on human health: A critical review

This review analyzes the growing body of research on microplastics floating in indoor and outdoor air and their potential effects on human health. Evidence indicates that inhaled microplastics can trigger inflammatory responses and cellular damage in the lungs, liver, and reproductive system, and may carry toxic additives deeper into the body. The authors call for more interdisciplinary research to understand the long-term health implications of breathing in these tiny plastic particles.

2025 Journal of Environmental Sciences 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Airborne microplastics: Emerging threats and health implications for humans

This review synthesizes research on airborne microplastics as emerging human health hazards, covering their sources, atmospheric transport, inhalation and ingestion exposure pathways, and evidence of toxicological impacts on the respiratory and gastrointestinal systems.

2025 International Journal of Zoology and Applied Biosciences
Article Tier 2

Atmospheric micro (nano) plastics: future growing concerns for human health

This review examines the growing concern about nanoplastics in the atmosphere and their potential effects on human health, an area that has received far less attention than microplastics in water or soil. Researchers found that airborne nanoplastics can penetrate deep into the lungs and potentially enter the bloodstream due to their extremely small size. The study identifies critical knowledge gaps and calls for more research on inhalation exposure pathways and long-term health consequences.

2022 Air Quality Atmosphere & Health 135 citations
Article Tier 2

Airborne Microplastics and its Impact to Environmental Health

This review compiles recent findings on airborne microplastics, examining their sources, transport pathways, and potential health effects. The study highlights that airborne microplastics can travel long distances through atmospheric currents, contaminating both urban and remote environments, and that inhalation may contribute to respiratory disorders, particularly among vulnerable populations.

2025 Water Air & Soil Pollution 1 citations
Article Tier 2

An emerging class of air pollutants: Potential effects of microplastics to respiratory human health?

This review explores the emerging concern that airborne microplastics can be inhaled by humans, potentially causing adverse effects on the respiratory system. Researchers compiled available data on the concentration, size, shape, and chemical composition of microplastic particles found in urban air. The findings suggest that airborne plastic debris represents a largely understudied class of air pollutant with potential implications for human health.

2020 The Science of The Total Environment 406 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in air: a hidden public health threat

This short review explains how microplastics become airborne from land, ocean, and industrial sources and are transported globally through the atmosphere, potentially entering the human body through inhalation. The author frames airborne microplastics as a hidden public health threat warranting greater scientific and regulatory attention.

2022 Journal of Research in Atmospheric Science (JRAS)
Article Tier 2

Airborne Microplastics

This chapter reviews the global concern over airborne microplastics detected in diverse air matrices from urban environments to polar regions, driven by atmospheric circulation that transports particles over vast distances. The authors assess sources, measurement methods, and potential respiratory health effects of inhaled airborne microplastics.

2024
Article Tier 2

Airborne microplastics: a Trojan horse for respiratory dysfunction and multiorgan damage

This review examined evidence on airborne microplastics as a route of human exposure, focusing on how inhaled particles may affect respiratory function and potentially reach other organs. The study suggests that microplastics can act as carriers for other pollutants and pathogens, and that inhalation exposure warrants greater research attention alongside the more commonly studied ingestion pathway.

2025 Journal of Biological Research - Bollettino della Società Italiana di Biologia Sperimentale 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Respiratory Toxicity of Microplastics: Mechanisms, Clinical Outcomes, and Future Threats

This review summarized the respiratory toxicity of airborne microplastics, covering their sources, the routes by which they penetrate deep into lung tissue, and the range of clinical outcomes from chronic inflammation to potential malignancy. The authors warn that inhalation exposure represents an underappreciated and growing public health threat.

2025 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Microplastics as an Emerging Source of Particulate Air Pollution

This review examines the growing body of research on airborne microplastics as a source of particulate air pollution, covering their sources, transport mechanisms, and presence in both indoor and outdoor environments. Researchers highlight that airborne microplastics can travel long distances and have been found in remote locations far from population centers. The study underscores significant gaps in our understanding of how inhaling these tiny plastic particles may affect human health.

2025 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Airborne microplastics: Consequences to human health?

Researchers reviewed existing evidence on airborne microplastics and their potential effects on human respiratory health. Studies of workers exposed to plastic fibers and particles have documented airway inflammation and breathing difficulties, suggesting that susceptible individuals may face health risks even from environmental concentrations. The paper calls for greater awareness and future research into the health consequences of inhaling microplastic particles.

2017 Environmental Pollution 1580 citations
Review Tier 2

Airborne microplastics: A narrative review of potential effects on the human respiratory system

This review consolidates research on airborne microplastics and their potential effects on the human respiratory system. Studies show that inhaled microplastics can deposit in the lungs, trigger inflammation, cause oxidative stress, and lead to cell damage and death. While human exposure evidence is still limited, animal and cell studies suggest that long-term inhalation of airborne microplastics could pose significant risks to lung health.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 80 citations
Article Tier 2

Atmospheric microplastics and the human lungs

This review examines atmospheric microplastics—their known concentrations, types, sizes, and shapes in the air—and assesses the potential for human inhalation and associated health consequences. It identifies major standardization gaps that prevent direct comparison of datasets and calls for coordinated research to understand which MP types pose the greatest inhalation risk to human lungs.

2025 Repository@Hull (Worktribe) (University of Hull)
Article Tier 2

Airborne micro- and nanoplastics: emerging causes of respiratory diseases

This review examines growing evidence that tiny airborne plastic particles can enter the lungs and trigger or worsen respiratory diseases including asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and lung inflammation. The smallest nanoplastics are especially concerning because they can penetrate deep into lung tissue and even enter the bloodstream, yet research on airborne plastic health effects significantly lags behind studies on waterborne exposure.

2024 Particle and Fibre Toxicology 53 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

Microplastics inhalation and their effects on human health: a systematic review

This systematic review examines how breathing in microplastics affects human health. It finds that airborne microplastics can reach the lungs and may trigger inflammation, oxidative stress, and respiratory issues, with workers in textile and plastic industries facing the highest exposure levels.

2022 European Journal of Public Health 24 citations
Article Tier 2

The Pollution of Atmospheric Microplastics and Their Potential Risks to Humans

This review summarizes what is known about airborne microplastics—tiny plastic particles floating in the air we breathe—including their sources, distribution, and potential health risks. Fibers are the most common form found in air, and inhalation is an important but underestimated route of human microplastic exposure.

2021 IOP Conference Series Earth and Environmental Science 3 citations
Review Tier 2

A review of atmospheric microplastics pollution: In-depth sighting of sources, analytical methods, physiognomies, transport and risks

This review provides an in-depth analysis of atmospheric microplastic pollution, examining sources, detection methods, physical characteristics, transport mechanisms, and health risks. Researchers found that indoor environments tend to contain higher concentrations of airborne microplastics than outdoor settings, and that current detection methods are limited in their ability to capture the smallest particles. The study emphasizes the need for standardized sampling procedures and more research into the health effects of inhaling microplastic particles.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 118 citations
Article Tier 2

Micro- and nano-plastics in the atmosphere: A review of occurrence, properties and human health risks

This review summarizes research on tiny plastic particles floating in the air we breathe, both indoors and outdoors. Studies show that inhaling these airborne microplastics and nanoplastics can trigger immune responses, oxidative stress, and cell death, potentially contributing to cardiovascular disease and reproductive problems, though standardized testing methods are still needed.

2024 Journal of Hazardous Materials 108 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in the Air

This book chapter examines atmospheric microplastic pollution, reviewing the presence of MPs in outdoor and indoor air, the mechanisms by which they become airborne, human inhalation exposure estimates, and evidence for respiratory health effects.

2025
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in the Air and Their Associated Health Impacts

This review examines the presence of microplastics in air and their associated health impacts, summarizing evidence for airborne microplastic distribution globally, potential exposure routes including inhalation, and documented biological effects such as oxidative stress, cytotoxicity, immune disruption, and neurotoxicity.

2022 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Does microplastic really represent a threat? A review of the atmospheric contamination sources and potential impacts

This review examines airborne microplastics as emerging atmospheric contaminants that people inevitably inhale during normal breathing. Researchers found that fibers from synthetic textiles are the most common form of airborne microplastics, and their small size allows them to remain suspended in air and potentially cause health problems. The study discusses analytical methods used to measure airborne microplastics and calls for more research into their environmental and health impacts.

2021 The Science of The Total Environment 128 citations