Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Compound effect and mechanism of oxidative damage induced by nanoplastics and benzo [a] pyrene

Researchers examined how polystyrene nanoplastics and a common environmental pollutant called benzo[a]pyrene work together to cause oxidative damage in earthworm cells. They found that the two contaminants had a synergistic toxic effect, with combined exposure producing significantly higher levels of cell-damaging reactive oxygen species than either pollutant alone. The study suggests that nanoplastics may enhance the harmful effects of other soil pollutants by altering how they interact with living cells.

2023 Journal of Hazardous Materials 17 citations
Article Tier 2

The combined effects of polystyrene nanoplastics with nickel on oxidative stress and related toxic effects to earthworms from individual and cellular perspectives

Researchers studied the combined toxic effects of polystyrene nanoplastics and nickel on earthworms at both the individual and cellular levels. They found that nanoplastics amplified the harmful effects of nickel by increasing oxidative stress, reducing cell viability, and disrupting the balance between protective and damaging molecules in cells. The findings suggest that nanoplastics can worsen the toxicity of heavy metals already present in contaminated soils.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 21 citations
Article Tier 2

New regulatory mechanisms of polystyrene nanoplastics on the ecological risk of zinc: Cellular oxidative injury and molecular toxicity mechanisms in soil sentinel organisms (Eisenia fetida)

Researchers investigated how nanoplastics and zinc interact to affect earthworm cells and a key antioxidant defense enzyme. While nanoplastics alone had minimal effect, combining them with zinc dramatically increased cell death beyond what zinc caused on its own, and molecular modeling showed nanoplastics can physically bind to and potentially block the antioxidant enzyme. The findings suggest that nanoplastics may worsen the toxicity of heavy metals in soil by interfering with organisms' natural defense mechanisms.

2025 Environmental Pollution 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Combined toxicity of polyethylene microplastics and nickel oxide nanoparticle on earthworm (Eisenia andrei): oxidative stress responses, bioavailability and joint effect

Researchers studied the combined toxicity of polyethylene microplastics and nickel oxide nanoparticles on earthworms over 28 days. They found that smaller microplastics caused greater oxidative stress, and the combination of both pollutants was more harmful than either one alone. The study suggests that the co-occurrence of microplastics and metal nanoparticles in soil can amplify negative effects on soil-dwelling organisms.

2024 Environmental Science and Pollution Research 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Aging enhancement and synergistic effect on toxicity to soil fauna by polystyrene microplastics-tetrabromobisphenol A toxicity exposure

Researchers investigated the combined toxicity of aged polystyrene microplastics and the flame retardant tetrabromobisphenol A on earthworms, finding that aging enhanced the microplastics' ability to adsorb and deliver the toxic chemical. The co-exposure produced synergistic effects including increased oxidative stress, gut microbiome disruption, and tissue damage beyond what either contaminant caused alone. The study highlights that weathered microplastics in contaminated soils may amplify the toxicity of co-occurring industrial chemicals.

2025 Environmental Research 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Co-Exposure of Nanopolystyrene and Other Environmental Contaminants—Their Toxic Effects on the Survival and Reproduction of Enchytraeus crypticus

This study tested the combined toxicity of nanopolystyrene particles alongside pharmaceuticals, metals, and engineered nanomaterials on the soil worm Enchytraeus crypticus, finding that co-exposure often amplified harm to survival and reproduction beyond that of each pollutant alone. The results highlight that real-world mixtures of plastic and chemical contaminants pose greater ecological risks than single-substance assessments suggest.

2022 Toxics 10 citations
Article Tier 2

Redefining the synergistic toxicity of nano-plastics and cadmium in earthworm coelomocytes: the mechanism of α-amylase molecular docking orientation and energy crisis

Researchers exposed earthworm immune cells (coelomocytes) to polystyrene nanoplastics combined with the heavy metal cadmium, finding that nanoplastics act as carriers that amplify cadmium uptake and worsen oxidative stress, energy metabolism disruption, and enzyme damage beyond what cadmium causes alone.

2025 International Journal of Biological Macromolecules 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Bioavailability of pyrene in soil affected by polylactic acid and polystyrene microplastics and their toxic effects on earthworms (Eisenia fetida)

Researchers investigated how polylactic acid and polystyrene microplastics interact with the pollutant pyrene in soil and affect earthworm health. They found that while microplastics alone did not break down the earthworms' antioxidant defenses, combining them with pyrene produced more severe toxic effects including neurotoxicity and disruption of gut microbiota. The study suggests that microplastics in contaminated soils can amplify the harmful effects of other pollutants on soil organisms.

2025 Environmental Pollution 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Combined effects of polyethylene microplastics and carbendazim on Eisenia fetida: A comprehensive ecotoxicological study

Researchers studied the combined effects of polyethylene microplastics and the pesticide carbendazim on earthworms and found that the two pollutants together caused worse damage than either alone. The combined exposure led to growth problems, oxidative stress, and organ damage even at lower concentrations. Since earthworms are essential for soil health and microplastics and pesticides commonly co-exist in farmland, these findings suggest that agricultural soil contamination could have cascading effects on the food system.

2024 Environmental Pollution 17 citations
Article Tier 2

Gut toxicity of polystyrene microplastics and polychlorinated biphenyls to Eisenia fetida: Single and co-exposure effects with a focus on links between gut bacteria and bacterial translocation stemming from gut barrier damage

Researchers examined how polystyrene microplastics and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) affect the gut health of earthworms, both individually and in combination. They found that co-exposure caused more severe gut barrier damage and bacterial translocation than either pollutant alone, with significant disruption to the gut microbial community. The study highlights the importance of considering combined pollutant effects when assessing environmental risks to soil organisms.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 15 citations
Article Tier 2

Polystyrene Nanoplastics Elicit Multiple Responses in Immune Cells of the Eisenia fetida (Savigny, 1826)

This study examined how nanoplastics from polystyrene affect the immune cells of earthworms, which play a critical role in soil ecosystems. Researchers found that the tiny plastic particles were taken up by the cells, triggered oxidative stress, weakened antioxidant defenses, destabilized cell membranes, and initiated early-stage cell death. The results provide cellular-level evidence that nanoplastic exposure poses ecological risks to soil-dwelling organisms.

2024 Toxics 6 citations
Article Tier 2

Amplification of benzo[a]pyrene toxicity persistence in earthworms by polystyrene nanoplastics: From organismal health to molecular responses

This study found that nanoplastics can make a common cancer-causing pollutant (benzo[a]pyrene) more persistent and toxic in soil. Earthworms exposed to the pollutant carried on nanoplastics showed greater oxidative damage than those exposed to the pollutant alone. This matters because nanoplastics in the environment may act as carriers that amplify the harmful effects of other toxic chemicals.

2025 Journal of Hazardous Materials 10 citations
Article Tier 2

Polystyrene nanoplastics at predicted environmental concentrations enhance the toxicity of copper on Caenorhabditis elegans

Even at low concentrations found in the environment, polystyrene nanoplastics significantly increased copper toxicity in roundworms by boosting oxidative stress and triggering stress-response genes. The nanoplastics alone did not cause obvious harm, but when combined with copper, the damage was much worse than copper alone. This is concerning because in real-world soil and water, nanoplastics and heavy metals often occur together, potentially creating greater health risks than either pollutant individually.

2024 Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety 12 citations
Article Tier 2

Molecular mechanisms of nano-sized polystyrene plastics induced cytotoxicity and immunotoxicity in Eisenia fetida

Researchers studied how polystyrene nanoplastics affect earthworm immune cells and found that exposure caused significant oxidative stress, DNA damage, and weakened immune function. The nanoplastics physically bound to and damaged lysozyme, a key immune protein, impairing the earthworms' ability to fight off infections. Since earthworms are essential soil organisms, this immune damage could have cascading effects on soil health and the agricultural systems that humans depend on.

2023 Journal of Hazardous Materials 39 citations
Article Tier 2

Combinational effect of titanium dioxide nanoparticles and nanopolystyrene particles at environmentally relevant concentrations on nematode Caenorhabditis elegans

Researchers exposed the model nematode Caenorhabditis elegans to environmentally realistic concentrations of both titanium dioxide nanoparticles and nanopolystyrene simultaneously, finding that nanoplastics enhanced the toxicity of the metal oxide particles, worsening locomotion impairment and gut oxidative stress beyond what either pollutant caused alone.

2018 Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety 158 citations
Article Tier 2

Influence of polystyrene nanoparticles on the toxicity of tetrabromobisphenol A in human intestinal cell lines

When human intestinal cells were exposed to both polystyrene nanoparticles and the flame retardant TBBPA together, the chemical pollutant dominated the toxic response, causing oxidative stress, DNA damage, and disruption of mitochondrial function. The study shows that mixing microplastics with other contaminants can produce complex, hard-to-predict health effects in gut cells, which matters because people are routinely exposed to multiple pollutants at once.

2023 Research Square (Research Square)
Article Tier 2

Polystyrene nanoplastics and benzo[a]pyrene co-exposure differentially impacts earthworm intra- and extracellular lysozyme

Researchers studied how polystyrene nanoplastics interact with the toxic pollutant benzo[a]pyrene in earthworms and found a surprising dual effect. At the cellular level, nanoplastics actually reduced oxidative stress caused by the pollutant alone, but at the molecular level they worked together to impair a key immune enzyme called lysozyme. The findings reveal that nanoplastics can simultaneously protect and harm organisms depending on the biological scale being examined.

2025 International Journal of Biological Macromolecules 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Ecotoxicological risk of co-exposure to fosthiazate and microplastics on earthworms (Eisenia fetida): Integrating biochemical and transcriptomic analyses

Researchers investigated the combined toxic effects of the insecticide fosthiazate and microplastics on earthworms using both biochemical and genetic analyses. They found that co-exposure increased oxidative stress, DNA damage, and disrupted metabolic pathways more severely than either pollutant alone. The study suggests that microplastics may amplify pesticide toxicity in soil organisms, raising concerns about their combined impact on soil ecosystem health.

2024 Environmental Pollution 8 citations
Article Tier 2

Combined toxicity of organophosphate flame retardants and polyethylene microplastics on Eisenia fetida: Biochemical and molecular insights

Researchers exposed earthworms to polyethylene microplastics, chlorinated flame retardants, and their combinations to assess combined toxicity effects. They found that the most toxic flame retardant (TDCPP) had its effects reduced when combined with microplastics, likely because the plastics absorbed the chemical and lowered its bioavailability. In contrast, microplastics enhanced the toxicity of another flame retardant (TCPP), demonstrating that microplastics can act as both carriers and modulators of co-contaminant toxicity in soil ecosystems.

2025 Environmental Research 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Combined Effects of Micro- and Nanoplastics at the Predicted Environmental Concentration on Functional State of Intestinal Barrier in Caenorhabditis elegans

Researchers used the roundworm C. elegans to study the combined effects of nano- and micro-sized polystyrene particles at concentrations similar to what is found in the environment. They found that co-exposure caused more severe intestinal damage than either particle size alone, including increased oxidative stress and impaired gut barrier function. The study suggests that the real-world mixture of different-sized plastic particles may be more harmful than studies of single sizes would predict.

2023 Toxics 17 citations
Article Tier 2

Impacts of microplastics and heavy metals on the earthworm Eisenia foetida and on soil organic carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus

Researchers assessed the combined effects of polypropylene microplastics and a heavy metal mixture (copper, chromium, and zinc) on the earthworm Eisenia foetida and on soil organic carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus cycling. The study found that co-contamination exacerbated adverse effects on earthworm survival and soil nutrient dynamics compared to single-pollutant exposures, highlighting synergistic risks of combined microplastic and metal pollution in terrestrial ecosystems.

2022 Research Square (Research Square)
Article Tier 2

Ecotoxicological effects of microplastics and cadmium on the earthworm Eisenia foetida

Researchers studied the effects of microplastics alone and combined with the heavy metal cadmium on earthworms over 42 days. They found that both exposures reduced growth and increased mortality, with the combined treatment causing the most damage through increased oxidative stress. The study also revealed that microplastics can increase cadmium accumulation in earthworms by up to 161%, suggesting microplastics may worsen heavy metal contamination in soil ecosystems.

2020 Journal of Hazardous Materials 330 citations
Article Tier 2

Joint toxic effects of polystyrene nanoparticles and organochlorine pesticides (chlordane and hexachlorocyclohexane) on Caenorhabditis elegans

Joint exposure to polystyrene nanoplastics and organochlorine pesticides (chlordane and HCH) in the roundworm C. elegans caused greater toxicity than either pollutant alone, suggesting synergistic interactions. These findings highlight the importance of studying combined pollutant effects rather than individual chemicals in isolation.

2020 Environmental Science Nano 30 citations
Article Tier 2

Toxicological effects of polystyrene microplastics on earthworm (Eisenia fetida)

Researchers exposed earthworms to two sizes of polystyrene microplastics in soil for 14 days and found evidence of intestinal cell damage, oxidative stress, and DNA damage. The larger particles accumulated more in earthworm intestines, while both sizes triggered changes in key antioxidant markers. The study demonstrates that microplastic contamination in soil can cause measurable biological harm to important soil organisms.

2019 Environmental Pollution 383 citations