Papers

16 results
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Article Tier 2

Microplastic accumulation, depuration dynamics and localization in environmental compartments: combination of experimental set ups and field studies

Researchers tracked microplastic accumulation and depuration in multiple environmental compartments and marine organisms using controlled microcosm experiments. The study found that particles distribute differently across sediment, water, and biota, and that biological depuration is incomplete within realistic timeframes.

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

Beyond the exposure phase: Microplastic depuration and experimental implications

This review systematically analyzed studies of microplastic depuration in aquatic organisms, focusing on how long plastic particles are retained after exposure ends. The authors found that depuration kinetics vary by species, particle size, and polymer type, and that current studies inadequately characterize post-exposure clearance.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 8 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in Marine Environment: Occurrence, Distribution, and Extraction Methods in Marine Organisms

This review summarized the occurrence, distribution, and extraction methods of microplastics in marine organisms, highlighting how these particles enter marine food webs through runoff and atmospheric deposition and pose risks to ecosystems and human health.

2023 Open Journal of Ecology 8 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic in tissue of marine organisms

This review summarizes microplastic detection across various marine organism tissues, cataloging accumulation in fish, invertebrates, and marine mammals and highlighting that ingestion and trophic transfer are widespread across marine food webs.

2024 Concilium
Article Tier 2

Time-course distribution of fluorescent microplastics in target tissues of mussels and polychaetes

Researchers tracked the time-course distribution of fluorescent microplastics in mussels and polychaetes, finding that both organisms accumulated particles in digestive and gill tissues with distinct uptake and depuration patterns depending on species and tissue type.

2022 Chemosphere 25 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics Residence Time in Marine Copepods: An Experimental Study

Laboratory experiments measured how long microplastics remain in marine copepods after ingestion, finding that residence times vary by particle type and size, with some particles persisting longer than others and informing estimates of microplastic transfer through marine food webs.

2023 Sustainability 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Occurrence, Distribution, and Extraction Methods of Microplastics in Marine Organisms

This review synthesizes global data on microplastic occurrence and distribution across marine organisms, comparing the advantages and limitations of different extraction and identification methods used in the field.

2024
Article Tier 2

The legacy effect of microplastics on aquatic animals in the depuration phase: Kinetic characteristics and recovery potential

A meta-analysis of microplastic depuration studies across 68 kinetic curves from aquatic animals found that many species retain a fraction of ingested MPs even after prolonged exposure-free periods, with retention rates and recovery timelines varying by species and MP type. The findings highlight the legacy effects of microplastic exposure that persist after contamination ends.

2022 Environment International 18 citations
Article Tier 2

Understanding the influence of biota in the transfer of different sized microplastics between environmental compartments of marine ecosystem

This study investigated how marine micro- and macro-biota influence the transport of microplastics between environmental compartments such as water, sediment, and organisms, finding that biological interactions substantially alter the distribution of particles beyond what hydrodynamics alone would predict.

2025 Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology
Article Tier 2

Uptake and depuration kinetics of microplastics with different polymer types and particle sizes in Japanese medaka (Oryzias latipes)

Researchers studied the uptake and depuration kinetics of microplastics with different polymer types and sizes in Japanese medaka fish. They found that smaller particles accumulated more readily in fish tissues and were retained longer than larger ones, with particle distribution varying by organ. The study provides important quantitative data on how microplastic characteristics influence their accumulation and clearance in fish, which is relevant to understanding food chain transfer.

2021 Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety 98 citations
Article Tier 2

Development of a toolbox for the analysis of microplastic-tissue interactions in two benthic freshwater organisms

Researchers developed a histological toolbox to analyze microplastic-tissue interactions in two benthic freshwater invertebrates, addressing the methodological gap in available protocols for detecting whether ingested microplastics simply pass through the gut or accumulate at specific tissue zones and translocate into organism tissues.

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

Accumulation and Depuration of Microplastics by Oysters Upon the Laboratory Conditions

Researchers monitored microplastic accumulation and elimination in oysters over 30 days, finding that the digestive tract accumulated the highest concentrations (bioaccumulation factors increasing from ~10 to ~41 over 10 days), and that most particles were eliminated within 30 days of depuration.

2025 Environmental Quality Management
Article Tier 2

Toward an Improved Understanding of the Ingestion and Trophic Transfer of Microplastic Particles: Critical Review and Implications for Future Research

A comprehensive review of over 800 species found that while microplastics are routinely found in the digestive tracts of aquatic organisms, they do not appear to bioaccumulate or biomagnify through food webs, with over 99% of observations locating particles in the gastrointestinal tract rather than tissues. The review calls for more standardized sampling and reporting to enable better temporal and spatial trend analysis.

2020 Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 179 citations
Article Tier 2

Depuration kinetics and accumulation of microplastics in tissues of mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis

This study tracked how mussels take in, accumulate, and eventually expel microplastics of different sizes over time. Larger microplastics accumulated more in the gills and digestive gland, while smaller particles spread more widely through the body. Since mussels are popular seafood eaten whole, understanding how they retain microplastics helps estimate how much plastic people may be consuming through shellfish.

2024 Marine Environmental Research 11 citations
Article Tier 2

The fate of microplastic in marine sedimentary environments: A review and synthesis

A systematic review of 80 papers on microplastics in marine sediments found median concentrations varied widely by sediment environment, with fibers dominating many locations, and showed that sediment grain size and organic carbon content influence microplastic accumulation.

2020 Marine Pollution Bulletin 381 citations
Article Tier 2

DEVELOPMENT OF A NOVEL PROTOCOL FOR THE EXTRACTION OF SMALL MICROPLASTICS (1-5 µm) FROM BIOLOGICAL TISSUES

Researchers developed a novel extraction protocol to isolate and quantify small microplastics (1–5 µm) from biological tissues, addressing a major gap in marine contamination studies. The method improves detection of these hard-to-analyze particles, which are more likely to penetrate cells and accumulate in organisms.

2025 Journal of Biological Research - Bollettino della Società Italiana di Biologia Sperimentale