Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Influence of the polymer type on the impact of microplastic particles

Researchers compared the cellular effects of polystyrene, polyethylene, PVC, and PLA microparticles on murine macrophages and epithelial cells, assessing uptake and cytotoxicity. All polymer types were ingested by macrophages, but the degree of cytotoxicity varied by polymer composition.

2024 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Influence of the polymer type of a microplastic challenge on the reaction of murine cells

Researchers compared how mouse cells respond to microplastic particles made from different polymer types, including polystyrene, polyethylene, PVC, and plant-based alternatives. They found that immune cells could take up all particle types, while other cell types were selective based on the particles' surface charge. Importantly, none of the tested microplastic types showed significant short-term toxic effects on the cells, though longer-term impacts remain unclear.

2023 Journal of Hazardous Materials 17 citations
Article Tier 2

Unravelling the knot: Microplastic properties and their correlation with the cellular response

Researchers correlated the physico-chemical properties of microplastic particles -- including surface chemistry, size, and surface charge density -- with cellular uptake and biological responses in model cell lines, finding that macrophages engulfed significantly more particles than epithelial cells, and that uptake and downstream inflammatory effects were size- and surface charge-dependent.

2022 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Uptake and cellular effects of PE, PP, PET and PVC microplastic particles

Researchers tested intestinal uptake and cytotoxicity of PE, PP, PET, and PVC microplastic particles using human cell lines and found that 1–4 µm polyethylene particles crossed the intestinal epithelium at significantly higher rates than polystyrene, though cytotoxic effects only appeared at concentrations far above realistic dietary exposure.

2020 Toxicology in Vitro 216 citations
Article Tier 2

The Immunotoxic Effects of Environmentally Relevant Micro- and Nanoplastics

Researchers characterized the immunotoxic effects of over 20 types of micro- and nanoplastic particles on macrophages and dendritic cells, finding that physicochemical properties such as size, shape, polymer type, and surface oxidation strongly influence immune cell responses.

2025
Article Tier 2

A comparison of the effects of polystyrene and polycaprolactone nanoplastics on macrophages

A comparison of polystyrene and polycaprolactone nanoplastics on macrophage immune cells found both types induced adverse cellular effects, with the study highlighting that plastic persistence in the environment may drive progressive accumulation leading to chronic immune system impacts.

2025 Environmental Science Nano 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Cellular interactions with polystyrene nanoplastics—The role of particle size and protein corona

Researchers investigated how polystyrene nanoplastics interact with mammalian cells, finding that particle size and the protein corona that forms around particles in biological fluids strongly influence cellular uptake and toxicity. Smaller nanoplastics penetrated cell membranes more readily and caused greater disruption, suggesting that the tiniest plastic particles may pose the greatest biological risk.

2021 Biointerphases 61 citations
Article Tier 2

Relationship Between Particle Properties and Immunotoxicological Effects of Environmentally-Sourced Microplastics

Researchers exposed human macrophages to environmentally collected and weathered microplastic particles from the North Pacific Gyre and French coast to assess immunotoxicity, finding that particle physicochemical properties including polymer type and surface chemistry correlated with different cytokine response profiles. Multi-dimensional analysis revealed that surface area and hydrophobicity were key predictors of macrophage immune activation.

2022 Frontiers in Water 17 citations
Article Tier 2

Uptake and toxicity of polystyrene micro/nanoplastics in gastric cells: Effects of particle size and surface functionalization

Researchers evaluated the uptake and toxicity of polystyrene micro- and nanoplastics in human gastric cells, comparing different sizes and surface treatments. The study found that smaller 50-nanometer particles were taken up at significantly higher rates, with positively charged aminated particles being the most toxic, causing cytotoxicity at lower concentrations and higher rates of cell death.

2021 PLoS ONE 96 citations
Article Tier 2

Supposedly identical microplastic particles substantially differ in their material properties influencing particle-cell interactions and cellular responses

Researchers characterized two commercially available polystyrene microplastic particles that are nominally identical and commonly used in toxicity studies. They found substantial differences in monomer content, surface charge, and how the particles interacted with cells, leading to different effects on cell metabolism and proliferation. The study emphasizes that poorly characterized microplastic test particles can produce contradictory results, complicating efforts to draw general conclusions about microplastic effects.

2021 Journal of Hazardous Materials 70 citations
Article Tier 2

Noxic effects of polystyrene microparticles on murine macrophages and epithelial cells

Polystyrene microparticles induced cytotoxic effects in murine macrophages and intestinal epithelial cells at higher concentrations, triggering cell membrane damage, inflammatory cytokine release, and reduced phagocytic function, with smaller particles generally causing greater harm than larger ones at equivalent mass doses.

2021 Scientific Reports 59 citations
Article Tier 2

Role of Residual Monomers in the Manifestation of (Cyto)toxicity by Polystyrene Microplastic Model Particles

Researchers investigated whether the toxicity observed in laboratory studies using polystyrene microplastic particles might actually come from leftover styrene monomer trapped in the particles rather than the plastic itself. They found that standard commercial polystyrene particles containing residual monomers showed mild toxicity to mammalian cells, while thoroughly purified particles did not. The study suggests that some reported toxic effects of microplastics in lab settings may be partly attributed to chemical residues rather than the plastic particles alone.

2023 Environmental Science & Technology 22 citations
Article Tier 2

Properties and Related Effects of Microplastics in the Aquatic Environment: From the Organismic to Cellular Level

This review covers the properties of microplastics in aquatic environments — including polymer chemistry, particle size, shape, and surface charge — and how these characteristics determine their biological effects from the cellular to organismal level in aquatic organisms.

2025
Article Tier 2

Impact of Degradation of Polyethylene Particles on Their Cytotoxicity

Researchers found that degradation of polyethylene particles altered their cytotoxicity, with weathered and fragmented PE showing different toxic effects on cells compared to pristine particles, suggesting environmental aging changes microplastic health risks.

2023 Microplastics 14 citations
Article Tier 2

Comprehensive in vitro polymer type, concentration, and size correlation analysis to microplastic toxicity and inflammation

Researchers conducted comprehensive in vitro testing of different microplastic polymer types, sizes, and concentrations across three human cell lines. The study found that toxicity and inflammatory responses varied significantly depending on polymer type and surface modification, with amine-modified particles showing the most potent effects, highlighting the importance of plastic-specific parameters in toxicity assessments.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 64 citations
Article Tier 2

Exposure of microplastic at levels relevant for human health : cytotoxicity and cellular localization of polystyrene microparticles in four human cell lines

Researchers tested the cytotoxicity of polystyrene microplastics on four human cell lines at concentrations relevant to real-world human exposure from food, water, and packaging. At environmentally realistic doses, microplastics were taken up by cells but did not cause significant toxicity, though higher concentrations did produce cell damage, suggesting that current exposure levels may be near a threshold of concern.

2020 Ghent University Academic Bibliography (Ghent University)
Article Tier 2

The internal dose makes the poison: higher internalization of polystyrene particles induce increased perturbation of macrophages

Researchers exposed human macrophages, key immune cells, to polystyrene particles of different sizes and found that smaller particles were internalized more readily and caused greater cellular disruption. Nanoscale plastics triggered stronger inflammatory responses and more oxidative stress than larger microplastics. The study suggests that the amount of plastic actually absorbed by immune cells, not just the amount present in the environment, determines how harmful the exposure is.

2023 Frontiers in Immunology 47 citations
Article Tier 2

Size- and polymer-dependent toxicity of amorphous environmentally relevant micro- and nanoplastics in human bronchial epithelial cells

This study examined how the size and type of plastic particles affect their toxicity to human lung cells. Researchers tested environmentally relevant micro- and nanoplastics with irregular shapes, rather than the uniform spheres typically used in lab studies, to better mimic real-world exposure. The findings contribute to a growing understanding that particle size and polymer composition both matter when assessing the potential health risks of inhaling airborne plastic particles.

2025 Microplastics and Nanoplastics 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Elucidating the effects of naturally weathered aged-polypropylene microplastics and newly procured polypropylene microplastics on raw 264.7 macrophages

Researchers compared the effects of naturally weathered polypropylene microplastics and newly manufactured ones on immune cells called macrophages. They found that both types caused cell toxicity and disrupted normal cellular function, but the weathered particles had distinct effects due to their altered surface chemistry. The study suggests that aging and environmental weathering change how microplastics interact with biological systems.

2024 Environmental Science Nano 6 citations
Article Tier 2

How surface properties of pristine and environmentally exposed microplastics determine particle-cell-interactions

Researchers examined how surface properties of pristine versus environmentally exposed microplastic particles determine their interactions with cells, including attachment and internalization. The study found that physicochemical properties such as surface charge, functional groups, and eco-corona coatings are critical determinants of particle-cell interactions, underscoring the need for thorough particle characterization in cytotoxicity studies.

2022 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Effects of bisphenol A and nanoscale and microscale polystyrene plastic exposure on particle uptake and toxicity in human Caco-2 cells

Researchers studied how human intestinal Caco-2 cells take up polystyrene plastic particles of five different sizes ranging from 300 nanometers to 6 micrometers. The study found that smaller particles were taken up at higher rates and that co-exposure with bisphenol A increased cellular toxicity, suggesting that nanoscale plastics may pose a greater risk to human intestinal cells than larger microplastics.

2020 Chemosphere 267 citations
Article Tier 2

Particle Shape and Intrinsic Cellular Variability Shape the Responses of Macrophages to Polystyrene Nano and Micro Particles

This study found that the shape of polystyrene particles and natural variation between individual macrophages both influence how immune cells respond to plastic particles. Understanding these factors is important for assessing the potential health risks of microplastic exposure.

2023 HAL (Le Centre pour la Communication Scientifique Directe)
Article Tier 2

Uptake and toxicity of methylmethacrylate-based nanoplastic particles in aquatic organisms

Researchers tested the uptake and toxicity of methylmethacrylate-based nanoplastic particles on aquatic organisms, finding cellular uptake and toxic effects at tested concentrations, contributing evidence on nanoplastic hazards.

2015 Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 144 citations
Article Tier 2

Size-dependent internalization of polystyrene microplastics as a key factor in macrophages and systemic toxicity

Researchers systematically tested how the size of polystyrene microplastics affects their uptake and toxicity in immune cells and mice. Smaller particles (0.5 micrometers) were taken up much more readily by immune cells and caused more damage, including mitochondrial dysfunction and cell death, compared to larger 5-micrometer particles. In living mice, smaller microplastics accumulated more in organs and caused broader changes in blood and metabolic markers, confirming that particle size is a key factor in microplastic toxicity.

2025 Journal of Hazardous Materials 24 citations