Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

The effects of microplastics and nanoplastics upon history, policies, and Drosophila melanogaster

This study examined the effects of microplastics and nanoplastics on the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster, finding that dietary exposure to these pervasive environmental contaminants causes measurable biological harm and making the case for stronger regulatory policies.

2023
Article Tier 2

Nanoplastics and Microplastics and Their Impact on Male Reproduction—Uncovering the Hidden Hazards Using the Drosophila Model

Using Drosophila as a model organism, researchers investigated the impact of micro- and nanoplastics on male reproductive health, finding that exposure impaired reproductive output and sperm quality. The study validates Drosophila as an ethical, cost-effective model for assessing reproductive toxicity of microplastics.

2024
Article Tier 2

No evidence for behavioral or physiological effects of nanoplastics ingestion in the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster

Researchers exposed Drosophila melanogaster to low and high concentrations of nanoplastics (1 µg/g and 1 mg/g) across several generations and measured emergence rate, mitochondrial activity, metabolism, body mass, and locomotion. No significant behavioral or physiological effects were detected, suggesting Drosophila may be less sensitive to nanoplastics than aquatic species.

2025 Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Polystyrene microplastics alter physiological parameters in the Drosophila model

Researchers investigated the effects of polystyrene micro- and nanoplastics on fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster) and found dose- and size-dependent toxicity at both larval and adult stages. Exposure caused significant behavioral impairments, elevated markers of cellular stress, and activated key stress response genes, indicating that polystyrene microplastics induce oxidative stress and cellular damage.

2026 Environmental Science and Pollution Research
Article Tier 2

Size-dependent and sex-specific negative effects of micro- and nano-sized polystyrene particles in the terrestrial invertebrate model Drosophila melanogaster

Fruit flies exposed to low doses of polystyrene micro and nanoparticles for 28 days showed tissue damage in their gut, ovaries, and testes, with smaller particles causing more harm. The plastics triggered oxidative stress and cell death in gut tissue, though reproduction was not significantly affected at these doses. This study, using a well-established model organism, suggests that even low-level, long-term exposure to tiny plastic particles can damage internal organs, with potential implications for other species including humans.

2023 Micron 38 citations
Article Tier 2

Investigation of the effects of nanoplastic polyethylene terephthalate on environmental toxicology using model Drosophila melanogaster

Researchers synthesized polyethylene terephthalate nanoplastics and fed them to fruit flies to assess their toxic effects. The nanoplastics caused increased oxidative stress, reduced survival rates, and impaired reproductive capacity in the exposed flies. The study demonstrates that PET nanoplastics, one of the most common plastic types in food and beverage packaging, can have measurable toxic effects on living organisms.

2024 Nanotoxicology 7 citations
Article Tier 2

Metabolic effects of dietary exposure to polystyrene microplastic and nanoplastic in fruit flies

Researchers used fruit flies as a model organism to study the metabolic effects of ingesting polystyrene microplastic and nanoplastic particles at environmentally relevant doses. They found that both particle sizes disrupted metabolic processes, with nanoplastics causing more pronounced changes in energy storage and lipid metabolism. The study suggests that dietary exposure to plastic particles, even at levels found in the environment, can meaningfully alter metabolic physiology.

2025 Journal of Experimental Biology 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Drosophila melanogaster as sentinel organism for hazard identification of environmental contaminants

This review highlights how the common fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster) is being used as a model organism to study the toxic effects of environmental pollutants, including microplastics, nanomaterials, and heavy metals. Researchers found that fruit flies offer genetic tools and measurable endpoints like survival, reproduction, and behavior that make them valuable for identifying hazards and discovering biomarkers. The study underscores the fruit fly's growing role in advancing our understanding of how environmental contaminants affect living organisms.

2025 Journal of Hazardous Materials 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Polyethylene microplastics affect behavioural, oxidative stress, and molecular responses in the Drosophila model

Fruit flies exposed to polyethylene microplastics showed reduced climbing and crawling ability, increased oxidative stress, and activation of genes involved in cell death and stress responses. The microplastics overwhelmed the flies' antioxidant defenses and triggered the same cellular damage pathways associated with disease in mammals. Since fruit flies share many biological pathways with humans, these findings suggest that microplastic exposure could cause similar oxidative damage and stress responses in human cells.

2024 Environmental Science Processes & Impacts 16 citations
Article Tier 2

Polyethylene microplastics induce behavioural and developmental deficits in the Drosophila model

Researchers generated polyethylene microplastics sized 2-10 micrometers and tested their effects on fruit flies (Drosophila). They found that exposure caused severe declines in fly longevity, reduced locomotor function in both larvae and adults, decreased eclosion rates, and increased antioxidant enzyme activity along with stress-response gene activation. The findings provide evidence that polyethylene microplastics can impair growth, development, and survival in a well-established animal model.

2025 Toxicology and Environmental Health Sciences 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of PET microplastics on the physiology of Drosophila

Researchers used Drosophila fruit flies as a model to study the physiological effects of PET microplastics, finding that ingestion affected reproduction, lifespan, and gut function. The study suggests that even common plastic types found in food packaging can have measurable biological effects when consumed by living organisms.

2021 Chemosphere 66 citations
Article Tier 2

Plastic Fly: What Drosophila melanogaster Can Tell Us about the Biological Effects and the Carcinogenic Potential of Nanopolystyrene

Researchers used fruit flies as a model organism to investigate whether polystyrene nanoplastics can cause genetic damage and promote tumor growth. They found that nanoplastic exposure led to DNA damage and increased tumor formation in the flies, with effects worsening at higher concentrations. The study suggests that nanoplastics commonly found in food packaging may carry cancer-promoting potential that warrants further investigation.

2024 International Journal of Molecular Sciences 7 citations
Article Tier 2

The heart of plastic: utilizing the Drosophila model to investigate the effects of micro/nanoplastics on heart function

Researchers used fruit flies as a model to study how micro- and nanoplastics affect heart function, an area with very limited research despite the known presence of plastics in human cardiovascular tissue. They reviewed existing evidence showing that plastic particles can alter heart rate, trigger stress responses, and accumulate in cardiac tissue. The study highlights the fruit fly as a fast, affordable model for investigating the potential cardiovascular risks of plastic pollution.

2024 Frontiers in Toxicology 4 citations
Article Tier 2

A mini review on exposure of microplastic to Drosophila melanogaster causing sex-specific, transgenerational, locomotory, physiological and developmental effect

This mini-review synthesized studies on how polystyrene and PET microplastics affect Drosophila melanogaster across multiple biological levels including sex-specific responses, physiology, behavior, development, and transgenerational effects. Male Drosophila showed greater sensitivity to microplastics with higher mortality, and effects were both concentration- and size-dependent.

2024 Journal of Entomological Research 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Polypropylene microplastics affect the physiology in Drosophila model

Researchers found that polypropylene microplastics negatively affected the physiology of Drosophila fruit flies, complementing earlier work on polyethylene terephthalate microplastics and demonstrating that different polymer types can impair organism health.

2023 Bulletin of Entomological Research 13 citations
Article Tier 2

Exposure of polystyrene microplastics induces oxidative stress and physiological defects in Drosophila melanogaster

Researchers used fruit flies as a model organism to study the effects of polystyrene microplastics and found that dietary exposure caused significant oxidative stress at both tested concentrations. The microplastics impaired climbing ability in adult flies and disrupted normal development patterns during the pupal stage. The study suggests that microplastic ingestion can trigger oxidative damage and physiological defects even in relatively simple organisms.

2024 Asian Journal of Basic Science & Research 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Toxicological Profile of Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) Microplastic in Ingested Drosophila melanogaster (Oregon R+) and Its Adverse Effect on Behavior and Development

Researchers fed PET microplastics to fruit flies and found that the particles accumulated in their bodies and caused dose-dependent declines in movement, climbing ability, and survival rates. Higher microplastic concentrations also slowed the flies' development from larvae to adults. While fruit flies are a simple model organism, these behavioral and developmental effects suggest that chronic microplastic ingestion could impair neurological and physiological functions in animals exposed through their diet.

2023 Toxics 42 citations
Article Tier 2

Intake of polyamide microplastics affects the behavior and metabolism of Drosophila

Researchers found that exposure to polyamide microplastics altered feeding behaviour, reduced triglyceride and protein levels, and disrupted metabolism in Drosophila, with effects differing between sexes and increasing in severity at higher microplastic concentrations.

2022 Chemosphere 24 citations
Article Tier 2

Polystyrene micro- and nanoplastics affect locomotion and daily activity ofDrosophila melanogaster

Uptake and effects of polystyrene micro- and nanospheres on Drosophila melanogaster were studied, finding that both sizes of plastic particles affected locomotion and daily activity patterns. The results suggest that microplastic and nanoplastic ingestion can disrupt behavioral functions in the fruit fly model.

2021 Environmental Science Nano 57 citations
Article Tier 2

Exposure to polystyrene microplastic beads causes sex-specific toxic effects in the model insect Drosophila melanogaster

Researchers fed fruit flies (Drosophila) polystyrene microplastics and found toxic effects that differed between males and females. Exposed flies showed changes in feeding behavior, digestion, and excretion, with females experiencing greater reproductive impacts. This study is significant because it demonstrates that microplastic toxicity can be sex-specific, suggesting that health effects in humans might also differ between men and women.

2023 Scientific Reports 70 citations
Article Tier 2

Adverse biological effects of ingested polystyrene microplastics using Drosophila melanogaster as a model in vivo organism

Researchers used fruit flies as an in vivo model to study the biological effects of ingesting polystyrene microplastics at three different sizes. Exposure caused significant morphological defects, impaired climbing behavior, and genotoxic effects as shown by a somatic mutation test. The findings suggest that polystyrene microplastics may induce genetic damage primarily through somatic recombination, raising concerns about their potential biological impact on living organisms.

2021 Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health 61 citations
Article Tier 2

Changes in the wing shape and size in fruit flies exposed to micro and nanoplastics

Researchers exposed fruit flies to polystyrene nano- and microplastics during development and then measured changes in wing shape and size using geometric morphometrics. They found that exposed flies had altered wing dimensions compared to controls, with effects varying between males and females. The study demonstrates that plastic particle exposure during early development can produce measurable physical changes in organisms.

2024 Chemosphere 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Transgenerational effects on development following microplastic exposure in Drosophila melanogaster

Researchers fed Drosophila melanogaster flies plastic-supplemented food and found that while treated flies showed changes in fertility and sex ratio, their unexposed offspring had shorter larval development and reduced adult size, demonstrating transgenerational developmental effects from parental microplastic exposure.

2021 PeerJ 41 citations
Article Tier 2

Sex-specific toxicity of PMMA Microplastics: Behavioral and metabolic dysregulation in adult Drosophila melanogaster

Drosophila melanogaster flies exposed to PMMA microplastics for 20 days showed sex-specific responses — males had enhanced motor activity while females showed metabolic disruption and shortened lifespan — highlighting the importance of considering sex differences in microplastic toxicity studies.

2025 Environmental Pollution