Papers

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Article Tier 2

Effect of Microplastics on the Bioavailability of (Semi-)Metals in the Soil Earthworm Eisenia fetida

Researchers studied how polystyrene microplastics affect the uptake of cadmium and arsenic by earthworms in paddy soil. They found that microplastics altered the soil chemistry in ways that changed how much of these metals the earthworms absorbed, with effects varying by metal type and concentration. The study suggests that microplastics in contaminated agricultural soils can influence how toxic metals move through the food chain.

2025 Agronomy 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Mechanistic insights into polystyrene micro/nanoplastics-facilitated cadmium trophic transfer and aggravated toxicity along a lettuce-snail terrestrial food chain

Researchers investigated how polystyrene micro- and nanoplastics affect cadmium transfer through a lettuce-snail food chain and found that the plastics significantly increased cadmium availability in soil and its accumulation in lettuce leaves. Co-exposure caused amplified toxicity in snails, including greater oxidative stress, intestinal damage, and gut barrier dysfunction, demonstrating that microplastics can worsen the effects of heavy metal contamination in terrestrial food chains.

2026 Environmental Pollution
Article Tier 2

Cadmium and copper absorption by Eisenia fetida in the presence of different concentrations of microplastics

Researchers exposed earthworms (Eisenia fetida) to soil containing tire-derived microplastics alongside heavy metals cadmium and copper, finding that the microplastics increased the worms' uptake of both toxic metals. The results suggest that microplastics in soil act as carriers that make heavy metal contamination more bioavailable and dangerous for soil-dwelling organisms.

2023 Journal of Environmental Health Engineering
Article Tier 2

Influences of coexisting aged polystyrene microplastics on the ecological and health risks of cadmium in soils: A leachability and oral bioaccessibility based study

This study tested whether the presence of aged microplastics in soil changes how easily the toxic heavy metal cadmium can enter the human body through accidental soil ingestion. The results showed that aged polystyrene microplastics actually reduced cadmium absorption in the stomach phase, though the effect varied by soil type. This suggests that the interaction between microplastics and other pollutants in soil creates a complicated picture for assessing human health risks.

2024 Journal of Hazardous Materials 23 citations
Article Tier 2

Impacts of polyethylene microplastics on bioavailability and toxicity of metals in soil

Researchers studied how polyethylene microplastics affect the bioavailability and toxicity of copper and nickel in soil using earthworms as test organisms. They found that adding microplastics to contaminated soil increased the bioavailability of the metals and enhanced their toxic effects on the earthworms. The study suggests that microplastics in soil can worsen heavy metal pollution by making metals more accessible and harmful to soil-dwelling organisms.

2020 The Science of The Total Environment 184 citations
Article Tier 2

Co-exposure of polystyrene microplastics influence cadmium trophic transfer along the “lettuce-snail” food chain: Focus on leaf age and the chemical fractionations of Cd in lettuce

Researchers found that polystyrene microplastics altered cadmium accumulation and trophic transfer along the lettuce-snail food chain, with effects varying by leaf age and the chemical fractionation of cadmium in lettuce tissues.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 9 citations
Article Tier 2

Influence of polyethylene-microplastic on environmental behaviors of metals in soil

Researchers investigated how polyethylene microplastics affect the adsorption, desorption, and bioavailability of heavy metals in soil. They found that adding microplastics altered how metals bind to soil particles and increased the mobility of certain metals like cadmium and lead. The study suggests that microplastic contamination in soils may change the environmental behavior of heavy metals, potentially increasing their availability to plants and soil organisms.

2021 Environmental Science and Pollution Research 93 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics impact the accumulation of metals in earthworms by changing the gut bacterial communities

Researchers exposed earthworms to three sizes of polystyrene microplastics (0.1, 10, and 100 micrometers) to study effects on metal accumulation and gut bacteria. The study found that microplastics reduced nickel and lead accumulation in earthworms while significantly altering gut bacterial communities. The results suggest that microplastics influence heavy metal bioavailability in soil organisms by changing gut microbiome composition.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 47 citations
Article Tier 2

Assessment of fate and impacts of microplastics in terrestrial environment using the snail Cantareus aspersus

Researchers used the land snail Cantareus aspersus as a bioindicator to assess the fate and effects of microplastics in terrestrial soils, conducting exposure studies that demonstrated microplastic uptake, tissue accumulation, and toxic effects in this organism. The work provides one of the few detailed assessments of microplastic risk in soil ecosystems using a terrestrial invertebrate model, contributing data to fill a significant gap in terrestrial ecotoxicology.

2024
Article Tier 2

Chronic toxicity effects of sediment-associated polystyrene nanoplastics alone and in combination with cadmium on a keystone benthic species Bellamya aeruginosa

Researchers conducted a 28-day sediment toxicity test to examine the effects of polystyrene nanoplastics alone and combined with cadmium on the freshwater snail Bellamya aeruginosa. The study found that nanoplastics increased cadmium bioavailability and facilitated its accumulation, leading to enhanced oxidative stress and cellular damage. The findings suggest that nanoplastics may amplify the toxicity of co-occurring heavy metal contaminants in freshwater sediments.

2022 Journal of Hazardous Materials 51 citations
Article Tier 2

Size effects of polystyrene microplastics on the accumulation and toxicity of (semi-)metals in earthworms

Researchers studied how different sizes of polystyrene microplastics and nanoplastics affect the uptake of cadmium and arsenic in earthworms. They found that microplastics facilitated greater accumulation of these metals than nanoplastics by damaging intestinal integrity, with proteomic and metabolomic analysis revealing disruptions to the earthworms' immune and metabolic systems.

2021 Environmental Pollution 51 citations
Article Tier 2

Polystyrene-nickel interactions in soil: Implications for metal mobility, plant uptake, and human health

Researchers grew medicinal plants (Capsella bursa-pastoris) in soil contaminated with polystyrene microplastics and nickel and found that microplastics increased nickel mobility and bioavailability by shifting metal speciation toward more extractable soil fractions, raising human health risks through plant uptake.

2025 Journal of Hazardous Materials
Article Tier 2

The effect of polystyrene microplastic and biosolid application on the toxicity and bioaccumulation of cadmium for Enchytraeus crypticus

Researchers tested how polystyrene microplastics and biosolid application jointly affected cadmium toxicity and bioaccumulation in the soil worm Enchytraeus crypticus, finding that biosolid application altered metal availability in ways that modified the toxicity of cadmium under MP presence. The study highlights the complexity of predicting contaminant risks in agricultural soils with multiple amendment inputs.

2022 Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management 11 citations
Article Tier 2

Ecotoxicological impacts of polyethylene, polystyrene and polyamide on the land snail Cantareus aspersus in a life cycle experiment

Researchers exposed garden snails (Cantareus aspersus) to polyethylene, polystyrene, or polyamide microplastics at 0.1%, 1%, and 10% concentrations in food across a full life cycle experiment. All three polymer types reduced growth, reproduction, and survival at the highest dose, with polyamide causing the most consistent toxicity, suggesting terrestrial gastropods are at risk from environmental microplastic exposure.

2025 Journal of Hazardous Materials
Article Tier 2

Mitigating potential of polystyrene microplastics on bioavailability, uptake, and toxicity of copper in maize (Zea mays L.)

This study found that polystyrene microplastics in soil actually reduced copper toxicity in maize plants by binding to the copper and making it less available for plant uptake. While this might seem beneficial, it means microplastics are changing how nutrients and metals move through agricultural soil in unpredictable ways. The findings highlight that microplastic contamination in farmland can alter the chemistry of soil in complex ways that affect crop nutrition and food safety.

2024 Environmental Pollution 11 citations
Clinical Trial Tier 1

Impact of polystyrene microplastics on cadmium uptake in corn (Zea mays L.) in a cadmium‐contaminated calcareous soil

This study found that polystyrene microplastics in soil increased the uptake of the toxic heavy metal cadmium in corn plants. The research showed that microplastic contamination in agricultural soil can make crops absorb more harmful substances. This is a direct concern for food safety, as microplastics in farmland could increase our exposure to heavy metals through the food we eat.

2023 Environmental Progress & Sustainable Energy 21 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic-mediated environmental behavior of metal contaminants: mechanism and implication

This review examines how microplastics interact with heavy metals across water, soil, and air environments, acting as carriers that concentrate and transport toxic metals. Researchers found that microplastics can increase the bioavailability and toxicity of metal contaminants to living organisms. The study highlights major gaps in current analytical methods and calls for better tools to understand these complex pollutant interactions.

2024 Environmental Science and Pollution Research 8 citations
Article Tier 2

Uptake of Potentially Toxic Elements in Microplastic-Contaminated Soils: A Controlled Laboratory Study Using Eisenia Fetida

Researchers exposed earthworms to tire-derived microplastics in soil and found that levels above 100 mg/g caused significant buildup of toxic heavy metals — including chromium, lead, tin, and zinc — inside the worms' bodies. This shows microplastics act as carriers that help move harmful metals from soil into living organisms.

2025 Journal of Human Environment and Health Promotion 1 citations
Article Tier 2

How do polystyrene microplastics affect the adsorption of copper in soil?

Researchers investigated how polystyrene microplastics affect the behavior of copper in soil, finding that the plastics reduced copper adsorption by 3 to 16 percent while increasing its release. The microplastics blocked active binding sites on soil particles and lacked the functional groups needed to hold copper in place. The study suggests that microplastics in contaminated soils could make heavy metals more mobile and potentially more harmful.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 21 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics aggravate the joint toxicity to earthworm Eisenia fetida with cadmium by altering its availability

Researchers exposed earthworms to polyethylene microplastics combined with cadmium and found that co-exposure caused significantly worse effects than either pollutant alone, including increased avoidance behavior, weight loss, and DNA damage. The microplastics increased the bioavailability of cadmium in soil by up to 1.43-fold and boosted cadmium accumulation in earthworm tissue by up to 2.65-fold. The study demonstrates that microplastics can worsen heavy metal toxicity to soil organisms by making the metals more accessible for uptake.

2020 The Science of The Total Environment 166 citations
Article Tier 2

Traditional microplastics alter microbial community, metabolites and nutrition in heavy metal-contaminated coastal saline soil

Researchers added three types of microplastics to coastal soil already contaminated with heavy metals (cadmium, copper, and zinc), finding that the plastics altered soil chemistry, shifted microbial communities, disrupted metabolic pathways, and changed how available the toxic metals were to organisms. These findings suggest microplastics can worsen existing heavy metal pollution by changing how metals move through soil ecosystems.

2025 Communications Earth & Environment 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Evaluating Toxic Interactions of Polystyrene Microplastics with Hazardous and Noxious Substances Using the Early Life Stages of the Marine Bivalve Crassostrea gigas

Researchers examined how polystyrene microplastics interact with cadmium and phenanthrene, two common coastal pollutants, using Pacific oyster larvae as a test species. They found that microplastics generally reduced the toxicity of these pollutants but could also act as carriers that alter how the toxins are delivered to the organisms. The study highlights the complex and sometimes unpredictable ways microplastics can change the impact of other pollutants on marine life.

2025 Nanomaterials 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics promoted cadmium accumulation in maize plants by improving active cadmium and amino acid synthesis

Researchers examined how polystyrene and polypropylene microplastics interact with cadmium contamination to affect soil chemistry and cadmium uptake in maize plants across two soil types. The study found that microplastics generally promoted cadmium accumulation in maize by reducing soil pH and increasing cadmium bioavailability, with effects varying by particle size depending on the soil type.

2023 Journal of Hazardous Materials 111 citations
Article Tier 2

Metal type and aggregate microenvironment govern the response sequence of speciation transformation of different heavy metals to microplastics in soil

A five-month soil incubation experiment showed that polyethylene microplastics shifted heavy metals like zinc and cadmium from bioavailable forms toward organic-bound forms in soil aggregates, reducing their immediate availability to plants and organisms. The effect varied by metal type and aggregate size, suggesting microplastics can alter the environmental behavior of multiple co-contaminants simultaneously.

2020 The Science of The Total Environment 160 citations