Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Desorption of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from polyethylene microplastics in two morphologically different digestive tracts of marine teleosts: Gastric red seabream (Pagrus major) and agastric mummichog (Fundulus heteroclitus)

Researchers tested how polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) desorb from polyethylene microplastics in the digestive tracts of two fish species with different gut structures. PAH desorption was higher in gut content extracts than in buffer alone, with peak desorption occurring in different gut regions depending on whether the fish had a stomach or not.

2022 Environmental Pollution 18 citations
Article Tier 2

The adsorption and desorption behaviors of phenanthrene and pyrene onto microplastics in the aquatic environment and digestive fluids

This study examined how polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) like phenanthrene and pyrene adsorb to and desorb from four types of microplastics in both freshwater and simulated digestive fluids. The findings show that PAHs bind strongly to microplastics and can be released under digestive conditions, suggesting that microplastics can deliver organic pollutants to organisms that ingest them.

2020 Infoscience (Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne)
Article Tier 2

Estimating microplastic-bound intake of hydrophobic organic chemicals by fish using measured desorption rates to artificial gut fluid

Desorption rates of five hydrophobic organic chemicals (HCHs, PeCB, HeCB) from polyethylene microplastics into artificial gut fluid were measured and used in Monte Carlo simulations to estimate the fraction of chemical intake from MP ingestion by fish, finding that MP-mediated intake was less than 1% of total dietary uptake for all compounds. The study provides a quantitative framework for assessing when microplastics are and are not meaningful vectors for chemical contamination in fish.

2018 The Science of The Total Environment 92 citations
Article Tier 2

Different partition of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon on environmental particulates in freshwater: Microplastics in comparison to natural sediment

This study investigated how the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon phenanthrene partitions between water and three common plastic types, finding that polymer composition strongly influences sorption behavior. The results help explain how microplastics act as vectors for toxic organic compounds in aquatic environments.

2017 Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety 233 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption of PAHs and PCDD/Fs in Microplastics: A Review

This review examines the adsorption of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and dioxins/furans (PCDD/Fs) onto microplastics, highlighting how microplastics can act as vectors transporting these toxic compounds through aquatic environments and into organisms that ingest them.

2022 Microplastics 30 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic-water partitioning of two states halogenated PAHs: Solute and sol

This study examined how halogenated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) partition between microplastics and water, finding that plastic type and contaminant chemistry both influence sorption behavior. Understanding how microplastics absorb and transport toxic chemicals is important for assessing the ecological risks they pose.

2021 Environmental Research 7 citations
Article Tier 2

Sorption of benzo(a)pyrene and of a complex mixture of petrogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons onto polystyrene microplastics

Researchers investigated the sorption of benzo(a)pyrene and a complex mixture of petrogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons onto polystyrene microplastics in aquatic systems, quantifying how the hydrophobic nature and large surface area of microplastics facilitate PAH accumulation and potential vector transport.

2022 Frontiers in Environmental Chemistry 11 citations
Article Tier 2

Potential of microplastics participate in selective bioaccumulation of low-ring polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons depending on the biological habits of fishes

Researchers collected fish and water from the Pearl River and found that microplastics were associated with selective bioaccumulation of low-ring polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in fish tissues depending on feeding behavior and habitat. Bottom-feeding fish with higher microplastic body burdens also had elevated PAH concentrations, suggesting a carrier effect.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 19 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics as a Vector for Exposure to Hydrophobic Organic Chemicals in Fish: A Comparison of Two Polymers and Silica Particles Spiked With Three Model Compounds

Three-spined sticklebacks fed microplastic-contaminated diets showed measurable transfer of hydrophobic chemicals (including an estrogen mimic, a pesticide, and a PAH) from the plastics into fish tissues, though transfer rates were low. The study confirms that ingested microplastics can act as vectors for chemical contaminants in fish, even if the overall exposure remains modest.

2020 Frontiers in Environmental Science 40 citations
Article Tier 2

Hydrophobic organic contaminants are not linked to microplastic uptake in Baltic Sea herring

This study examined whether hydrophobic organic contaminant (HOC) levels in Baltic Sea herring were linked to the amount of microplastics in their digestive tracts, finding no such link. The results challenge the assumption that microplastics are a major vector for HOC exposure in wild fish under real-world conditions.

2018
Article Tier 2

Estimation of the uptake and gut retention of microplastics in juvenile marine fish: Mummichogs (Fundulus heteroclitus) and red seabreams (Pagrus major)

This study estimated microplastic uptake and gut retention by two marine fish species exposed to polyethylene particles, finding that ingestion rates were proportional to water concentration and that most particles were eliminated within 24 hours. While most microplastics pass through fish quickly, the continuous exposure in contaminated water means that fish guts frequently contain these particles.

2020 Marine Pollution Bulletin 58 citations
Article Tier 2

Sorption, Extraction, and Characterization of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Environmentally Weathered Microplastics, Particulate Organic Matter, Sediment, and Fish Species in the Lavaca-Matagorda Bay System

Researchers studied how microplastics carry cancer-causing chemicals called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the Lavaca-Matagorda Bay system in Texas. They found PAHs attached to microplastics, sediment, and in the digestive systems of three commercially important fish species. This shows that microplastics can act as vehicles for toxic chemicals in coastal waters, potentially affecting the safety of fish that people eat.

2025 Environment & Health 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption and Desorption Behaviour of Polychlorinated Biphenyls onto Microplastics’ Surfaces in Water/Sediment Systems

Researchers evaluated the adsorption and desorption behavior of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) onto polystyrene, polyethylene, and polyethylene terephthalate microplastics of varying sizes in marine water/sediment systems. Results showed that polymer type and particle size influenced PCB binding capacity, with microplastics acting as potential vectors for transferring persistent organic pollutants to marine biota through the food chain.

2020 Toxics 86 citations
Article Tier 2

Laboratory Measurements of Pyrene and Acenaphthene Partition into Microplastics

Laboratory experiments measured how quickly and extensively three polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) — pyrene, phenanthrene, and acenaphthene — sorb onto pellets of five common plastic types. PAH uptake had half-lives of around 10 hours, with polypropylene absorbing the most and PVC absorbing the least. The results confirm that microplastics act as concentration vectors for toxic organic pollutants in the environment, and that weathering and oxidation of plastic surfaces increases their capacity to carry these chemicals into aquatic food chains.

2024 Journal of Marine Science and Engineering 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Sorption of PAHs to microplastic and their bioavailability and toxicity to marine copepods under co-exposure conditions

Researchers studied the sorption of two polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) to polyethylene and polystyrene microplastics and tested their bioavailability to marine copepods under co-exposure conditions. They found that adsorption dominated at lower temperatures and for smaller particles, while absorption was the main process for larger microplastics. The study suggests that PAHs sorbed to microplastics were generally less bioavailable to copepods than the same chemicals dissolved in surrounding water.

2019 Environmental Pollution 260 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption of some hazardous aromatic hydrocarbons by various pristine and heat-activated aged microplastics as potential pollutant carriers in aquatic environment

Researchers examined how pristine and heat-aged microplastics of four polymer types adsorb hazardous aromatic hydrocarbons, finding that aging significantly altered adsorption capacity. The results demonstrate that weathered microplastics may act as more effective pollutant vectors than pristine particles in aquatic environments.

2025 Journal of Contaminant Hydrology
Article Tier 2

Sorption of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons by microplastic films: Characterizing kinetics, isotherms, and impacts of sludge exposure

This study characterized the sorption of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons onto microplastic films in sludge and wastewater systems, finding that MP type and surface properties strongly influence PAH binding capacity and may facilitate PAH transport and bioavailability in contaminated environments.

2025 Chemosphere
Article Tier 2

Sorption of Pyrene and Fluoranthene onto Common Microplastics Under Freshwater Conditions

Researchers investigated how two common polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, pyrene and fluoranthene, bind to six different types of microplastic polymers under freshwater conditions. The study found significant differences in sorption capacity across polymer types, confirming that microplastics can act as vectors for transporting harmful organic pollutants through aquatic environments.

2026 Microplastics
Article Tier 2

Close encounters on a micro scale: microplastic sorption of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and their potential effects on associated biofilm communities

Researchers investigated the sorption of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) onto microplastics and the potential cascading effects on biofilm communities associated with those microplastics in aquatic environments. They found that evaluating microplastics in isolation underestimates their ecological impact, as co-transported PAHs can alter the composition and function of biofilm communities across different compartments of aquatic ecosystems.

2025 Environmental Microbiome
Article Tier 2

Evaluating the effect of different modified microplastics on the availability of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

Researchers investigated how weathering processes alter the ability of polyethylene microplastics to affect the bioavailability of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, finding that etching and UV aging increased surface oxygen groups, specific surface area, and pore volume. Free PAH concentrations decreased with increasing microplastic concentration for most hydrophobic PAHs, and UV aging only slightly altered sorption coefficients compared to pristine microplastics.

2019 Water Research 115 citations
Article Tier 2

Potentiation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon uptake in zebrafish embryos by nanoplastics

Nanoplastics present in the environment were found to enhance the uptake of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in zebrafish embryos, suggesting that plastic particles can act as a "Trojan horse" that increases exposure to other toxic pollutants. This combined toxicity effect raises important concerns about the true health risks of microplastic contamination.

2020 Environmental Science Nano 51 citations
Article Tier 2

Exploring the Interaction between Microplastics, Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons and Biofilms in Freshwater

Researchers investigated the adsorption of benzo(a)pyrene and pyrene by five microplastic types in freshwater over 3 and 30 days, finding that polypropylene was the most efficient adsorbent while polystyrene was the least efficient for benzo(a)pyrene. The study also examined how bacterial biofilms on microplastics, including pathogenic species such as Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae, interact with PAH adsorption dynamics.

2020 Polycyclic aromatic compounds 29 citations
Article Tier 2

Quantifying the vector effects of polyethylene microplastics on the accumulation of anthracene to Japanese medaka (Oryzias latipes)

Japanese medaka fish (Oryzias latipes) were exposed to polyethylene microplastics carrying anthracene to quantify the vector effect of microplastics compared to other chemical uptake pathways. The study assessed the relative contribution of microplastic ingestion versus dissolved exposure to total anthracene body burden, providing data for realistic risk assessment of microplastics as chemical vectors.

2020 Aquatic Toxicology 38 citations
Article Tier 2

Bioavailability of micro/nanoplastics and their associated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons to Daphnia Magna: Role of ingestion and egestion of plastics

Using a passive dosing system that kept dissolved pollutant concentrations constant, researchers showed that microplastics and nanoplastics dramatically increase the toxicity of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) to the water flea Daphnia magna: immobilization reached 71-80% when MPs/NPs and PAHs were combined, compared to 24% for PAHs alone. The PAHs adsorbed onto microplastic surfaces were bioavailable and contributed 37-50% of the total toxic effect, acting as a vector that delivers concentrated doses of carcinogenic compounds to organisms that ingest the particles. These findings reveal that the true hazard of microplastics in polluted water is substantially greater than either the particles or the chemical contaminants would cause on their own.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 8 citations