Papers

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Article Tier 2

The generation of environmentally persistent free radicals on photoaged microbeads from cosmetics enhances the toxicity via oxidative stress

Researchers studied how sunlight aging affects microbeads from cosmetics and their potential toxicity. They found that UV exposure generates persistent free radicals on the plastic surface, which significantly increased harmful effects on the roundworm C. elegans, including reduced reproduction and elevated oxidative stress. The findings suggest that weathered microplastics from personal care products may be considerably more toxic than their freshly manufactured counterparts.

2023 Environment International 31 citations
Article Tier 2

Environmentally persistent free radicals on photoaged microplastics from disposable plastic cups induce the oxidative stress-associated toxicity

Researchers found that when disposable plastic cups break down under UV light, they generate persistent free radicals on their surfaces that cause toxic effects in living organisms. These sun-aged microplastics reduced movement, growth, and reproduction in nematode worms through oxidative stress at environmentally realistic concentrations. The study shows that weathered microplastics from everyday items like disposable cups may be more harmful than fresh plastics because of the reactive chemicals generated during breakdown.

2023 Journal of Hazardous Materials 34 citations
Article Tier 2

Photoaged polystyrene nanoplastics exposure results in reproductive toxicity due to oxidative damage in Caenorhabditis elegans

Researchers exposed the roundworm C. elegans to polystyrene nanoplastics that had been aged by sunlight, simulating real-world environmental conditions. The study found that these weathered nanoplastics caused more severe reproductive harm than pristine particles, primarily through increased oxidative stress, suggesting that aging makes plastic particles more toxic to living organisms.

2024 Environmental Pollution 9 citations
Article Tier 2

Aged polystyrene microplastics cause reproductive impairment via DNA-damage induced apoptosis in Caenorhabditis elegans

Researchers found that sunlight-aged polystyrene microplastics caused significantly more reproductive damage than fresh microplastics in a laboratory worm model. The aged particles triggered DNA damage and programmed cell death in reproductive tissue through a specific signaling pathway. This matters because microplastics in the real environment are typically weathered by sunlight, making them potentially more harmful to fertility than laboratory studies using new plastics would suggest.

2024 Chemosphere 12 citations
Article Tier 2

Generation of environmentally persistent free radicals on photoaged tire wear particles and their neurotoxic effects on neurotransmission in Caenorhabditis elegans

Tire wear particles, a common type of microplastic found on roads and in waterways, become more toxic after exposure to sunlight. This study found that sunlight-aged tire particles generate persistent free radicals that damaged the nervous system of test organisms, reducing movement and lowering levels of key brain chemicals like dopamine and serotonin. These findings suggest that weathered tire particles may pose a greater neurotoxic risk than fresh ones.

2024 Environment International 24 citations
Article Tier 2

Comparison of reproductive toxicity between pristine and aged polylactic acid microplastics in Caenorhabditis elegans

This study compared the effects of new versus UV-aged biodegradable PLA microplastics on reproductive health using a worm model, finding that aged particles caused significantly more reproductive damage and DNA injury. The results suggest that biodegradable plastics become more toxic as they weather in the environment, which matters because these aged particles are what organisms, including humans, are most likely to encounter.

2024 Journal of Hazardous Materials 51 citations
Article Tier 2

Photoaged microplastics induce neurotoxicity associated with damage to serotonergic, glutamatergic, dopaminergic, and GABAergic neuronal systems in Caenorhabditis elegans

Researchers found that sunlight-aged microplastics caused more severe brain and nerve damage than fresh microplastics in lab worms, disrupting four major neurotransmitter systems: serotonin, glutamate, dopamine, and GABA. Even at very low, environmentally realistic concentrations, the aged particles impaired movement and altered gene expression related to nerve signaling. Since most microplastics in the real world have been weathered by sunlight, this study suggests that the neurotoxic risks of environmental microplastic exposure may be greater than studies using pristine particles indicate.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 40 citations
Article Tier 2

Formation of environmentally persistent free radicals on microplastics under UV irradiations

This study found that UV light from the sun creates long-lasting free radicals on the surface of microplastics, with stronger UV producing more radicals faster. These environmentally persistent free radicals are chemically reactive and can damage cells and DNA. The finding is important because it means sunlight-weathered microplastics in the environment may be more harmful than fresh plastics, carrying these damaging free radicals into the body when ingested or inhaled.

2023 Journal of Hazardous Materials 109 citations
Article Tier 2

Environmentally persistent free radicals on photoaged nanopolystyrene induce neurotoxicity by affecting dopamine, glutamate, serotonin and GABA in Caenorhabditis elegans

Researchers found that when polystyrene nanoplastics age under sunlight, they generate environmentally persistent free radicals on their surface that make them significantly more toxic to the nervous system. Using the model organism C. elegans, they showed that aged nanoplastics disrupted movement and reduced levels of key neurotransmitters including dopamine, serotonin, and GABA. The study suggests that weathered nanoplastics in the environment may pose greater neurological risks than freshly produced particles.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 24 citations
Article Tier 2

Photo-aged polylactic acid microplastics causes severe transgenerational decline in reproductive capacity in C. elegans: Insight into activation of DNA damage checkpoints affected by multiple germline histone methyltransferases

Researchers found that even supposedly biodegradable polylactic acid (PLA) microplastics, after being aged by sunlight, caused severe reproductive decline in worms that persisted across multiple generations. This is concerning because PLA is widely marketed as an eco-friendly alternative to conventional plastic, yet these results suggest that sunlight-degraded PLA particles may pose long-lasting biological harm through changes in gene regulation.

2025 Environmental Pollution 11 citations
Article Tier 2

A Critical Review of an Environmental Risk Substance Induced by Aging Microplastics: Insights into Environmentally Persistent Free Radicals

This review examines how microplastics generate long-lasting free radicals as they age in the environment through exposure to sunlight and chemical reactions. These environmentally persistent free radicals (EPFRs) on aged microplastics can cause oxidative stress and damage to living cells, adding a previously underappreciated layer of toxicity beyond the physical harm caused by the plastic particles themselves.

2024 Environmental Science & Technology 46 citations
Article Tier 2

New Insights into the Mechanisms of Toxicity of Aging Microplastics

This study showed that UV-aged polypropylene microplastics are significantly more toxic than fresh ones, absorbing more chemicals and generating more harmful reactive oxygen species in seawater. The aged particles caused greater damage to cell membranes in mussels compared to pristine plastics. Since most microplastics in the ocean have been weathered by sunlight, real-world exposure risks may be higher than laboratory studies using new plastics suggest.

2024 Toxics 16 citations
Article Tier 2

Unraveling the impacts of photolysis-induced aging microplastics on enhanced immunotoxicity and nephrotoxicity

Researchers compared the toxicity of pristine and sun-aged polyethylene and PET microplastics on kidney cells and immune cells and found that aged particles were up to 40 percent more toxic. The increased harm was attributed to environmentally persistent free radicals that form on plastic surfaces during UV exposure, which amplify oxidative stress inside cells. The study highlights that weathered microplastics in the real environment may pose greater health risks than the pristine particles typically used in laboratory studies.

2025 Journal of Hazardous Materials 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Photoaging behavior and neurotoxic effects of shower gel-derived microbeads in Caenorhabditis elegans

Researchers characterized how shower gel-derived microbeads photoaged under UV radiation and tested the neurotoxicity of aged particles in C. elegans, finding that photooxidation generated persistent free radicals and that aged microbeads caused greater neurological damage than pristine particles.

2025 Journal of Environmental Management
Article Tier 2

Photoaged microplastics induce neurotoxicity via oxidative stress and abnormal neurotransmission in zebrafish larvae (Danio rerio)

This study found that microplastics aged by sunlight were more toxic to zebrafish larvae than fresh microplastics, causing brain damage and abnormal behavior. The sun-aged particles triggered greater oxidative stress and disrupted neurotransmitter systems in the developing fish. This is concerning because most microplastics in the environment have been weathered by sunlight, meaning the real-world health risks may be greater than lab studies using fresh plastics suggest.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 69 citations
Article Tier 2

Seawater Accelerated the Aging of Polystyrene and Enhanced Its Toxic Effects on Caenorhabditis elegans

Researchers simulated the aging of polystyrene microplastics in seawater and found that the marine environment accelerated surface erosion, releasing smaller aged particles. When tested on the nematode C. elegans, the aged polystyrene caused greater reductions in movement, vitality, and reproduction compared to virgin particles, driven by increased oxidative stress. The findings suggest that microplastics become more toxic as they weather in ocean conditions.

2023 International Journal of Molecular Sciences 10 citations
Article Tier 2

Chronic exposure to UV-aged microplastics induces neurotoxicity by affecting dopamine, glutamate, and serotonin neurotransmission in Caenorhabditis elegans

Researchers found that UV-aged microplastics caused more severe neurotoxic effects than pristine microplastics when worms were chronically exposed to low concentrations. The aged particles disrupted dopamine, glutamate, and serotonin signaling pathways and caused visible neurodegeneration in the test organisms. The study suggests that microplastics become more harmful as they weather in the environment, which is an important consideration for assessing real-world exposure risks.

2021 Journal of Hazardous Materials 112 citations
Article Tier 2

Insights into the Photoaging Behavior of Microplastics: Environmental Fate and Ecological Risk

This review examines how sunlight ages microplastics in the environment, breaking them into smaller pieces and changing their surface chemistry in ways that make them more toxic and more likely to carry other pollutants. Sun-aged microplastics release dissolved organic matter that can harm aquatic life, and their roughened surfaces attract more bacteria and chemical contaminants. Since most microplastics in nature have been exposed to sunlight, their real-world health risks may be higher than studies using fresh lab plastics suggest.

2025 Environmental Science & Technology 7 citations
Article Tier 2

Potential toxicity of nanopolystyrene on lifespan and aging process of nematode Caenorhabditis elegans

Researchers chronically exposed C. elegans to nanopolystyrene across their aging lifespan and found that high concentrations shortened lifespan while lower concentrations still impaired locomotion and elevated intestinal reactive oxygen species in older animals, with nanoplastic exposure progressively suppressing immune genes, antioxidant defenses, and mitochondrial stress responses as worms aged.

2019 The Science of The Total Environment 91 citations
Article Tier 2

Photoaged Polystyrene Microplastics Accelerate Aging in Caenorhabditis elegans via Ferroptosis-Linked Insulin Signaling Pathway

Researchers found that photoaged polystyrene microplastics accelerated aging in the nematode C. elegans at environmentally relevant concentrations far more than fresh particles. The aged plastics generated more persistent free radicals and accumulated more readily in the organisms, triggering ferroptosis, a form of iron-dependent cell death, and disrupting insulin signaling pathways. The study suggests that environmental weathering makes microplastics substantially more harmful to biological aging processes.

2026 Environmental Science & Technology
Article Tier 2

Photoaging enhances combined toxicity of microplastics and tetrabromobisphenol A by inducing intestinal damage and oxidative stress in Caenorhabditis elegans

Researchers found that UV-aged microplastics combined with the flame retardant TBBPA caused greater harm to roundworms than either contaminant alone. The photoaged microplastics had increased capacity to absorb the chemical and enhanced its toxic effects, including reduced growth, impaired reproduction, and intestinal damage. The study suggests that weathered microplastics in the environment may amplify the dangers of co-occurring chemical pollutants.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 20 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics - Back to Reality: Impact of Pristine and Aged Microplastics in Soil on Earthworm Eisenia fetida under Environmentally Relevant Conditions

Researchers compared the effects of new versus sunlight-aged polyethylene microplastics on earthworms at real-world contamination levels, finding that aged particles caused more harm. The aged microplastics accumulated more in earthworm guts, caused greater tissue damage, and shifted gut bacteria away from beneficial species toward harmful ones. This is significant because most microplastics in the environment have been aged by sunlight, meaning their actual impact on soil health and the food chain may be worse than lab studies using fresh plastics suggest.

2023 Environmental Science & Technology 55 citations
Article Tier 2

Reproductive toxicity of UV-photodegraded polystyrene microplastics induced by DNA damage-dependent cell apoptosis in Caenorhabditis elegans

Researchers investigated how UV-photodegraded polystyrene microplastics affect reproduction in the nematode C. elegans at environmentally relevant concentrations. The study found that aged microplastics caused more severe reproductive toxicity than pristine ones, operating through a DNA damage-induced cell death pathway, suggesting that weathered microplastics in the environment may pose greater biological risks.

2021 The Science of The Total Environment 77 citations
Article Tier 2

UVB-aged microplastics and cellular damage : An in vitro study

Researchers conducted in vitro experiments to assess whether UVB-aged microplastics cause greater cellular damage than unaged plastics, given that UV irradiation fragments and chemically alters plastic surfaces. The study found that UVB aging enhanced the capacity of microplastics to cause cellular toxicity.

2024 Research Square (Research Square) 1 citations