Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Probiotics improve polystyrene microplastics-induced male reproductive toxicity in mice by alleviating inflammatory response

Researchers found that giving mice probiotics (beneficial bacteria including Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium) helped protect against reproductive damage caused by polystyrene microplastics. The microplastics disrupted gut bacteria and triggered inflammation that traveled to the testes via the gut-testis connection, reducing sperm quality and testosterone levels. Probiotic treatment restored healthy gut bacteria and reduced the inflammatory response, suggesting that maintaining gut health could help counteract some reproductive harm from microplastic exposure.

2023 Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety 65 citations
Article Tier 2

Testis–Gut‐Reproduction Axis: The Key to Reproductive Health

This review explores the connection between gastrointestinal health and male reproductive function, describing a testis-gut-reproduction axis. Researchers found that gut hormones and gut microbiota can either promote or inhibit testicular functions including sperm production and hormone regulation. The study suggests that maintaining gut health may be an important factor in supporting male fertility.

2024 Andrologia 7 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics-perturbed gut microbiota triggered the testicular disorder in male mice: Via fecal microbiota transplantation

Researchers found that polystyrene microplastics disrupted gut microbiota in mice, which in turn triggered testicular damage and reproductive disorders. Through fecal microbiota transplantation experiments, the study suggests that gut bacteria play a critical role in microplastic-induced reproductive toxicity, with inflammatory immune responses driven by bacterial changes being a key mechanism.

2022 Environmental Pollution 71 citations
Article Tier 2

Male infertility and its link to microplastics: A sterile future

This review examines the link between microplastic exposure and male infertility, summarizing evidence that microplastics and their chemical additives disrupt reproductive hormones, sperm quality, and testicular function in animal models and human studies.

2024 Journal of Biomedical Sciences
Review Tier 2

Environmental and microbiome determinants of sperm quality: a narrative review on male health

This narrative review examines how environmental factors, including microplastics and other emerging contaminants, affect male sperm quality and fertility. The study suggests that pollutants such as heavy metals, pesticides, phthalates, PFAS, air pollution, and microplastics can impair sperm parameters through various mechanisms, and highlights the role of the reproductive microbiome in mediating these environmental effects.

2026 Translational Andrology and Urology
Article Tier 2

Microplastics and impaired male reproductive health—exploring biological pathways of harm: a narrative review

This narrative review summarizes the evidence that microplastics may harm male reproductive health through oxidative stress, hormone disruption, inflammation, and direct damage to reproductive cells. While animal studies show concerning effects on sperm quality, testicular function, and fertility, human studies are still lacking. The review calls for urgent research on microplastic impacts on human male fertility and for policies to reduce microplastic exposure.

2025 Biology of Reproduction 7 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

Targeting Modifiable Risks: Molecular Mechanisms and Population Burden of Lifestyle Factors on Male Genitourinary Health

This systematic review examines how lifestyle factors, including microplastic exposure, affect male reproductive health. Research shows that microplastics, along with other environmental contaminants, may contribute to declining sperm quality and male infertility, which now affects up to 50% of infertility cases worldwide.

2025 International Journal of Molecular Sciences
Article Tier 2

Probiotics as a therapeutic approach to alleviate reproductive harm from polystyrene microplastics in male rats

Researchers tested whether probiotic supplementation could protect against reproductive toxicity caused by polystyrene microplastic exposure in male rats, finding that PS-MP caused dose-dependent testicular damage and disrupted kisspeptin signaling in the hypothalamus. Probiotics partially reversed these effects, suggesting a gut-testis axis through which microbiome modulation may mitigate reproductive harm.

2025 Scientific Reports
Review Tier 2

Microplastics and male reproductive system: A comprehensive review based on cellular and molecular effects

This comprehensive review examines how microplastics affect the male reproductive system at cellular and molecular levels, drawing on studies from multiple scientific databases. Researchers found that microplastics can damage testicular structure and function, impair spermatogenesis, and disrupt sperm parameters through mechanisms including oxidative stress, inflammation, and activation of cell death pathways. The review highlights that microplastics reduce ATP production and trigger signaling cascades that may contribute to male fertility problems.

2026 Toxicology Reports
Article Tier 2

Microplastics May Be a Significant Cause of Male Infertility

This review examines the potential link between microplastic exposure and the decline in male fertility observed over recent decades. Researchers reviewed evidence showing that microplastics can accumulate in reproductive tissues and may damage sperm quality through oxidative stress, hormonal disruption, and inflammatory responses. The study suggests that microplastics deserve serious attention as a possible contributing factor to rising male infertility rates.

2022 American Journal of Men s Health 81 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics: A Threat for Male Fertility

This review examines the growing evidence that microplastics may pose a threat to male fertility in mammals. Researchers found that these tiny plastic particles can enter the body through food and water, accumulate in tissues, and carry environmental pollutants that may act as hormone disruptors. Recent studies suggest that microplastic exposure is associated with changes in sperm quality, making them a potential concern for reproductive health.

2021 International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 167 citations
Article Tier 2

The hidden threat: Unraveling the impact of microplastics on reproductive health

This review summarizes how microplastics disrupt the reproductive system in both males and females by interfering with hormone signaling, damaging the blood-testis barrier, impairing sperm production, and causing problems in the ovaries and uterus. The authors also note that microplastic exposure may affect offspring development, including their future reproductive capacity and metabolism.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 71 citations
Article Tier 2

Lactobacillus brevis GKJOY Supplementation Ameliorates Oxidative Stress and Reproductive Dysfunction in Male Rats with Polystyrene Microplastics-Induced Reproductive Toxicity

Researchers investigated whether the probiotic Lactobacillus brevis GKJOY could protect against reproductive damage caused by polystyrene microplastics in male rats. The study found that probiotic supplementation helped reduce oxidative stress and improved reproductive function in microplastic-exposed animals, suggesting that certain probiotics may offer protective benefits against microplastic-related reproductive toxicity.

2025 International Journal of Molecular Sciences 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics Exposure Is Harmful to Male Reproductive Health

This chapter reviewed evidence on how microplastic exposure may harm male reproductive health through multiple pathways including ingestion and inhalation. The study examined mechanisms by which microplastics may disrupt reproductive function, including hormonal interference, oxidative stress, and inflammation in reproductive tissues, suggesting that widespread environmental microplastic contamination warrants attention as a potential factor in male fertility concerns.

2025 IntechOpen eBooks 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Detection and characterization of microplastics in the human testis and semen

Researchers detected microplastics in both human testis tissue and semen samples for the first time, finding an average of about 12 particles per gram in testis and different plastic types in semen. Polystyrene dominated in testis while polyethylene and PVC were most common in semen, providing critical evidence that microplastics can pollute the male reproductive system and raising concerns about potential fertility impacts.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 390 citations
Article Tier 2

The Microplastics and Human Health: Focus on the Reproductive System

This review examined evidence that microplastics accumulate in human reproductive tissues and evaluated their potential effects on fertility and reproductive health. The authors found microplastics detected in testes, ovaries, placenta, and semen, and summarized mechanistic evidence linking them to hormonal disruption, oxidative stress, and impaired gamete function.

2025 Quality in Sport
Article Tier 2

Gut microbiota combined with metabolome dissects long-term nanoplastics exposure-induced disturbed spermatogenesis

Researchers studied how long-term exposure to nanoplastics affects sperm production in mice by analyzing changes in gut bacteria and metabolic pathways. They found that nanoplastic exposure disrupted spermatogenesis, with amino-modified nanoplastics causing more severe effects than standard polystyrene particles. The study suggests that nanoplastics may harm male reproductive health by altering gut microbiota and lipid metabolism.

2023 Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety 16 citations
Meta Analysis Tier 1

O-192 The presence of microplastics in testicular tissue: implications for male infertility

This meta-analysis investigated the presence of microplastics in testicular tissue and found evidence of microplastic infiltration that may be linked to male infertility. The findings suggest that microplastic exposure could affect reproductive health, though more research is needed to fully understand the connection.

2025 Human Reproduction
Article Tier 2

Integrated fecal microbiome and metabolome analysis explore the link between polystyrene nanoplastics exposure and male reproductive toxicity in mice

Researchers exposed mice to polystyrene nanoplastics of different sizes and doses, then analyzed fecal microbiome and metabolome changes alongside reproductive outcomes. The study found that nanoplastic exposure disrupted gut microbiota balance and metabolic pathways, which correlated with reduced sperm count, viability, and testosterone levels. The findings suggest that gut microbiota-metabolite disruption may play an important role in nanoplastic-induced male reproductive toxicity.

2023 Environmental Toxicology 23 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of nano and microplastics on the reproduction system: In vitro and in vivo studies review

This review summarizes both lab and animal studies on how micro and nanoplastics affect the reproductive system in males and females. Evidence shows that microplastics can reduce sperm quality, damage ovaries, disrupt hormone levels, and even cross the placenta during pregnancy. The findings raise significant concerns about how widespread microplastic exposure might contribute to fertility problems and reproductive health issues in humans.

2023 Food and Chemical Toxicology 38 citations
Article Tier 2

Adolescent exposure to polystyrene nanoplastics induces male reproductive damage via the microbiome-gut-testis axis

Researchers exposed adolescent rats to polystyrene nanoplastics for five weeks and observed dose-dependent damage to testicular tissue, disrupted spermatogenesis, and compromised blood-testis barrier integrity. The study revealed a novel microbiome-gut-testis axis mechanism, where nanoplastics altered gut bacteria composition, which in turn contributed to reproductive toxicity in developing males.

2026 Journal of Nanobiotechnology
Article Tier 2

The ingestion of microplastics affects the diversity of the gut microbiome and testicular development in Japanese quail

This study examined how microplastic ingestion affects gut microbiome diversity and composition in an animal model, finding that microplastic exposure alters microbial community structure in ways that may impair digestive and immune function.

2024 Ecological Genetics and Genomics 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics and their interactions with microbiota

This review examines how microplastics interact with microbiota (the communities of microorganisms in the environment and in living bodies). Microplastics can carry harmful bacteria and disrupt the natural balance of microbial communities in soil, water, and the human gut. The disruption of gut microbiota by microplastics is particularly concerning because a healthy gut microbiome is essential for immune function, digestion, and overall health.

2023 Heliyon 64 citations
Article Tier 2

The Presence of Microplastics in Human Semen and Their Associations with Semen Quality

Researchers found microplastics in 75% of human semen samples tested, with an average of 17 particles per gram, including 15 different plastic types. Notably, higher levels of polystyrene microplastics were associated with lower sperm concentration and reduced sperm motility. This is one of the first studies to directly link microplastic presence in human semen to poorer sperm quality, adding to growing concerns about plastics and male fertility.

2025 Toxics 8 citations