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61,005 resultsShowing papers similar to Uptake of microplastics and impacts on plant traits of savoy cabbage
ClearInternalization, physiological responses and molecular mechanisms of lettuce to polystyrene microplastics of different sizes: Validation of simulated soilless culture
This study found that lettuce plants absorb polystyrene microplastics through their roots and transport them to their leaves, with smaller particles (100 nanometers) moving more easily than larger ones. Both sizes reduced plant growth by roughly 38-48% and triggered stress responses including changes in gene expression. These findings raise food safety concerns since microplastics in soil can accumulate in leafy vegetables that people eat.
Metabolic response of lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) to polystyrene nanoplastics and microplastics after foliar exposure
Researchers exposed lettuce plants to polystyrene nanoplastics and microplastics through their leaves and found that the particles altered the plant's metabolism differently depending on particle size. This foliar exposure pathway means that microplastics and nanoplastics settling on leafy vegetables from the air can change the plant's internal chemistry. Since lettuce is widely consumed raw, these metabolic changes raise questions about how microplastic-contaminated produce might affect nutritional quality and human health.
Water Spinach (Ipomoea aquatica F.) Effectively Absorbs and Accumulates Microplastics at the Micron Level—A Study of the Co-Exposure to Microplastics with Varying Particle Sizes
Researchers discovered that water spinach plants can absorb and accumulate micron-sized polystyrene microplastics in their leaves when the particles are taken up through the roots. The plastic particles traveled from roots through the plant's transport system to accumulate in leaf tissue, and high concentrations stunted plant growth. This finding is directly concerning for food safety because it shows that leafy vegetables people eat can contain microplastics absorbed from contaminated soil or water.
Leaf absorption contributes to accumulation of microplastics in plants
Researchers found that plant leaves can absorb tiny plastic particles directly from the air, not just through the roots. Leafy vegetables grown outdoors in polluted areas contained measurable amounts of common plastics like PET and polystyrene. This means airborne microplastics may be entering our food supply through the plants we eat.
Uptake and effect of carboxyl-modified polystyrene microplastics on cotton plants
This study found that polystyrene microplastics can enter cotton plant roots and accumulate over time, causing growth problems and triggering stress responses at the genetic level. While focused on plants rather than human health directly, the findings raise questions about whether microplastics absorbed by crops could eventually make their way into food and textile products.
Foliar implications of polystyrene nanoplastics on leafy vegetables and its ecological consequences
Scientists applied polystyrene nanoplastics to four common leafy vegetables and found that the tiny particles accumulated on leaf surfaces, particularly around the pores plants use to breathe. This accumulation reduced the plants' chlorophyll content and ability to photosynthesize, affecting their growth and nutritional quality. The findings raise concerns that airborne nanoplastic pollution could compromise the safety and nutritional value of the vegetables people eat.
Uptake and accumulation of microplastics in an edible plant
Researchers demonstrated for the first time that edible plants can take up and accumulate microplastics from soil. Using fluorescently labeled polystyrene beads, they showed that 0.2-micrometer particles entered lettuce roots through small cracks at lateral root emergence sites, traveled through the vascular system, and accumulated in the leaves. The findings raise concerns about a previously unrecognized pathway for human microplastic exposure through the consumption of vegetables grown in contaminated soil.
Evidence for the transportation of aggregated microplastics in the symplast pathway of oilseed rape roots and their impact on plant growth
Researchers discovered that polystyrene microplastics are absorbed by oilseed rape roots not as individual particles but as clumps, and they travel through the plant's living cell network into the root vascular system. The microplastics caused oxidative stress that affected photosynthesis and plant growth, though the plants activated defense mechanisms to partially cope. This study shows how microplastics can enter food crops through the roots, potentially introducing plastic particles into the food supply.
Uptake and translocation of nano/microplastics by rice seedlings: Evidence from a hydroponic experiment
In a hydroponic experiment, researchers showed that both nano-sized (80 nm) and micro-sized (1 micrometer) polystyrene particles were absorbed by rice plant roots and transported up into stems and leaves. The particles traveled through the plant's vascular system and accumulated in cell walls and between cells. This finding is concerning because it demonstrates that microplastics in soil and water can enter food crops like rice and potentially reach people through their diet.
Transport Dynamics and Physiological Responses of Polystyrene Nanoplastics in Pakchoi: Implications for Food Safety and Environmental Health
Researchers tracked fluorescently labeled nanoplastics as they traveled through pakchoi (a leafy green vegetable), entering through the roots, moving up through the plant's water-transport system, and accumulating in the leaves. The nanoplastics caused oxidative damage and disrupted plant hormones, demonstrating a clear pathway by which plastic pollution in soil could enter the human food supply through everyday vegetables.
Metabolomics reveals how spinach plants reprogram metabolites to cope with intense stress responses induced by photoaged polystyrene nanoplastics (PSNPs)
Researchers found that tiny plastic nanoparticles can be absorbed by spinach roots and travel into the edible leaves, disrupting the plant's normal metabolism. Aged (sun-weathered) nanoplastics caused even more severe effects than new ones, triggering widespread changes in the plant's chemical processes. This matters for human health because it shows microplastics can enter our food supply through the vegetables we eat.
Transport Dynamicsand Physiological Responses ofPolystyrene Nanoplastics in Pakchoi: Implications for Food Safetyand Environmental Health
Researchers tracked the transport and physiological responses of polystyrene nanoplastics in pakchoi (bok choy) plants, finding that nanoplastics were absorbed through roots and translocated to shoots where they disrupted chlorophyll production and reduced plant growth.
Influence of polyethylene microplastics on Brassica rapa: Toxicity mechanism investigation
Researchers exposed the fast-growing plant Brassica rapa (related to turnip and cabbage) to polyethylene microplastics that had been degraded by sunlight, finding that the plastics stunted plant growth by up to 51% and triggered cellular stress responses. Genetic analysis revealed the microplastics disrupted the plant's immune and growth pathways, providing insight into how plastic pollution in agricultural soil could affect food crops.
Unveiling the impact of microplastics and nanoplastics on vascular plants: A cellular metabolomic and transcriptomic review
This review summarizes how microplastics and nanoplastics affect plant health at the cellular and genetic level, disrupting metabolism, nutrient uptake, and growth in vascular plants. Since contaminated crops are a pathway for microplastics to enter the human diet, understanding how plants absorb and respond to these particles is important for food safety.
Uptake and transport of micro/nanoplastics in terrestrial plants: Detection, mechanisms, and influencing factors
This review summarizes how micro and nanoplastics enter and move through plants, including uptake through roots and leaves via processes like endocytosis and movement through cell walls. Smaller particles penetrate more easily, and factors like surface charge and soil conditions affect how much plastic plants absorb. The findings are important because they show that crops can take up microplastics from contaminated soil, creating a potential pathway for these particles to reach the human diet.
Accumulation modes and effects of differentially charged polystyrene nano/microplastics in water spinach (Ipomoea aquatica F.)
Researchers investigated how water spinach plants absorb nano and microplastics of different sizes and electrical charges. They found that smaller, positively charged particles were absorbed more readily by roots and could travel to the leaves, while larger particles tended to stay on root surfaces. This matters because leafy vegetables like water spinach could be delivering nanoplastics directly to people who eat them.
Micro- and nanoplastics-induced stress in plants: uptake, physiological disruption, and toxicity mechanisms
This review paper summarizes existing research on how tiny plastic particles (called microplastics and nanoplastics) are absorbed by plants and damage their health. These plastic particles can build up in plant tissues and disrupt how plants grow and function, which matters because we eat these plants. Since plastic pollution keeps breaking down into smaller pieces that plants absorb, this could eventually affect the safety and quality of our food supply.
Assessing the impact of micro and nanoplastics on the productivity of vegetable crops in terrestrial horticulture: a comprehensive review
This review summarizes research on how micro and nanoplastics accumulate in farmland and get absorbed by vegetable crops through their roots, building up in the edible parts of the plants. The plastic particles cause toxic effects that stunt plant growth by disrupting cellular processes and gene activity. This means the vegetables people eat may contain microplastics picked up from contaminated soil.
Adsorption, uptake and toxicity of micro- and nanoplastics: Effects on terrestrial plants and aquatic macrophytes
This review summarizes research on how micro- and nanoplastics interact with terrestrial plants and aquatic macrophytes, finding that many species can absorb or take up plastic particles. Both short-term and long-term plastic exposure triggered stress responses in plants, and since plants are at the base of food chains and a major part of the human diet, there is concern about plastics moving up through the food web. The findings suggest that plastic pollution could potentially affect plant productivity and broader ecosystem function.
Nanoplastics are taken up by lettuce and barley under realistic soil condition
Scientists found that tiny plastic particles called nanoplastics can be absorbed by lettuce and barley plants when grown in soil, even at low pollution levels similar to what's found in the environment. The plastic particles accumulated in the parts of the plants that people eat, showing a new way these pollutants could enter our food supply. While the amounts were small, this research reveals that nanoplastics from pollution can travel from soil into our crops, which could eventually affect human health.
Accumulation of plastics in terrestrial crop plants and its impact on the plant growth
This review examines how small plastic particles accumulate in crop plants and affect plant growth, finding that microplastics can enter plant tissues and disrupt physiological processes. Crops grown in microplastic-contaminated soil could carry plastic particles into the food supply, raising concerns about dietary exposure.
Uptake and distribution of microplastics of different particle sizes in maize (Zea mays) seedling roots
Researchers studied how maize seedling roots take up polystyrene microplastic beads of different sizes and found that smaller particles were absorbed more readily than larger ones. Particles as small as 0.2 micrometers were detected in both roots and shoots, with the root tip being the primary uptake zone. The findings confirm that microplastics can enter food crops through their root systems, raising questions about food safety.
[Effects of Polystyrene Microplastics on Growth, Physiology, Biochemistry, and Canopy Temperature Characteristics of Chinese Cabbage Pakchoi (Brassica chinensis L.)].
Hydroponic experiments showed that polystyrene microplastics at 100 nm and 1,000 nm sizes significantly inhibited the growth, photosynthesis, and nutrient quality of Chinese cabbage while increasing oxidative stress markers and elevating leaf temperature. These findings demonstrate that microplastic contamination poses a direct threat to crop production and food quality, with potential implications for human dietary exposure through contaminated vegetables.
Environmental levels of microplastics disrupt growth and stress pathways in edible crops via species-specific mechanisms
Researchers studied how environmentally realistic levels of microplastics affect the growth and stress responses of edible crops. The study found that microplastics disrupt plant growth and stress pathways through mechanisms that vary by crop species. These findings highlight the importance of understanding how different plants interact with microplastic particles when assessing risks to agricultural food production.