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20 resultsShowing papers similar to Bioaccessibility of microplastic-associated heavy metals using an in vitro digestion model and its implications for human health risk assessment
ClearHuman health risk assessment of metals from bio-based microplastics using a bioavailability gastrointestinal digestion model
This study used an in vitro gastrointestinal digestion model to assess human bioavailability of 12 metals—including cadmium, lead, mercury, and arsenic—from bio-based plastic microplastics made of PLA and polyhydroxybutyrate. Several metals showed significant bioaccessibility under simulated digestive conditions, indicating that bio-based plastics are not necessarily safer than conventional plastics with respect to metal leaching.
Toxic metal-adsorbed microplastics threaten human digestive system: A bioaccessibility-based risk assessment
Researchers assessed the health risks of toxic metals adsorbed onto microplastics when ingested through seafood, sea salt, and drinking water. They found that environmental aging increased the metal-adsorption capacity of microplastics by roughly ninefold, with the greatest risk observed in children aged 0-3 years during stomach digestion. The study suggests that fish, bivalves, and crustaceans are the dietary sources contributing most to non-carcinogenic risk from metal-contaminated microplastics.
Microplastics as Vectors of Chromium and Lead during Dynamic Simulation of the Human Gastrointestinal Tract
Using a dynamic in vitro simulator of the human gastrointestinal tract, researchers showed that chromium and lead adsorbed to polyethylene and polypropylene microplastics are released and become bioaccessible in gut conditions, suggesting microplastics can act as vectors delivering heavy metals to human tissues.
How Digestive Processes Can Affect the Bioavailability of PCBs Associated with Microplastics: A Modeling Study Supported by Empirical Data
Researchers used a simulated human digestive model to study whether gut processes change how quickly chemicals like PCBs transfer on and off microplastic particles. They found that digestive enzymes and bile salts significantly accelerated the release of these chemicals from microplastics, suggesting that the human gut environment may increase exposure to plastic-associated pollutants. The study provides new evidence that microplastics could act as carriers that release harmful chemicals more readily during digestion.
Assessment of the potential human health risk derived from metals associated to microplastics from recycled and biopolymer-based plastics
Researchers assessed the human health risk from metals associated with microplastics derived from recycled PET and polylactic acid (PLA) biopolymers using oral bioaccessibility testing, finding that intrinsic metal content increased with recycling cycles and that both materials adsorbed metals from the environment, with bioaccessible metal fractions posing potential health risks.
Bioaccessibility of Trace Metals and Rare Earth Elements (REE) in Microplastic
Researchers measured the bioaccessibility of trace metals and rare earth elements adsorbed onto beach microplastics using simulated digestive fluid conditions. Metals were released from microplastic surfaces under stomach acid conditions, indicating that plastic ingestion can deliver these contaminants to digestive systems of marine organisms and humans.
Copper adsorption on microplastics: Investigating toxicity in an in vitro digestive environment
Researchers analyzed how the presence of microplastics affects copper bioaccessibility and toxicity during in vitro digestion, testing naturally weathered particles as a realistic exposure model. Microplastics altered the bioaccessible fraction of copper, with implications for how co-ingested metals behave in the human gut.
Microplastics as a Trojan horse for trace metals
Researchers demonstrated that microplastics can absorb toxic metals from surrounding water and release them in conditions mimicking the human gut, essentially acting as a "Trojan horse" that transports heavy metals like lead, arsenic, and chromium into the body alongside the plastic particles.
Microplastic serves as a potential vector for Cr in an in-vitro human digestive model
Researchers tested whether microplastics could transport chromium into the human body using an in-vitro digestive model simulating the mouth, stomach, and intestines. They found that chromium was released from contaminated microplastics primarily in the stomach phase, with biodegradable polylactic acid releasing the highest proportion despite having the weakest initial adsorption. The study suggests that microplastics may act as vectors for delivering heavy metals into the human digestive system.
Desorption of bisphenol A from microplastics under simulated gastrointestinal conditions
Researchers investigated bisphenol A desorption from three types of microplastics under simulated gastrointestinal conditions, finding that ingested microplastics can release adsorbed BPA during digestion, posing potential health risks.
Exploring the release of microplastics' additives in the human digestive environment by an in vitro dialysis approach using simulated fluids
Researchers used an in vitro dialysis method with simulated digestive fluids to simultaneously assess both the bioaccessibility and bioavailability of plastic additives released from microplastics during human digestion. The study found that biopolymer microplastics released approximately four times more additives than conventional petroleum-based plastics, and that mechanical recycling and marine aging altered additive release patterns, raising questions about the safety assumptions around biodegradable plastics.
Mimicking human ingestion of microplastics: Oral bioaccessibility tests of bisphenol A and phthalate esters under fed and fasted states
Researchers simulated human digestion to measure how much bisphenol A and phthalate esters leach from polyethylene and PVC microplastics under fasting and fed conditions. They found that polar additives like dimethyl phthalate and BPA had the highest bioaccessibility, ranging from 37% to 92%, with greater release from the more flexible LDPE polymer. The study suggests that chemical additives in ingested microplastics can become bioaccessible during human digestion, with release rates depending on the plastic type and additive properties.
The bioaccessibility of adsorped heavy metals on biofilm-coated microplastics and their implication for the progression of neurodegenerative diseases
Researchers examined how microplastics coated with natural biofilms can carry heavy metals into the body and what that might mean for human health. The biofilm layer changes the surface chemistry of microplastics, making them better at attracting and holding onto toxic metals that can then become accessible during digestion. The study raises concerns about the combined exposure to microplastics and heavy metals as a potential contributing factor to long-term health issues.
Measuring the Effect of Dietary Microplastic on Biomagnification Potential of Environmental Contaminants and Plastic Additives
Researchers measured the effect of dietary microplastic ingestion on the biomagnification potential of hydrophobic organic contaminants and plastic additives in the gastrointestinal tract, testing competing hypotheses about whether microplastics increase, decrease, or negligibly affect contaminant uptake.
Assessing potential toxicity and metal bioavailability of secondary microplastics using in-vitro human gastric models
This study assessed the potential toxicity and metal bioavailability of sediment samples from an aquatic environment, evaluating how co-occurring microplastics may influence metal toxicity by altering metal speciation and uptake. The results highlight complex interactions between plastic particles and metal contaminants in sediments.
Speciation and release risk of heavy metals bonded on simulated naturally-aged microplastics prepared from artificially broken macroplastics
Researchers investigated heavy metal speciation and release risk from naturally aged microplastics in simulated saltwater and gastrointestinal solutions, finding that different metals varied in adsorption capacity and release behavior, posing potential risks to both ecosystems and human health.
Copper adsorption on microplastics: Investigating toxicity in an in vitro digestive environment
Researchers investigated how the presence of naturally weathered microplastics affects the bioaccessibility and toxicity of adsorbed copper during simulated gastrointestinal digestion. Results showed that microplastics altered the release and uptake of copper in the gut, potentially increasing or decreasing its bioavailable fraction depending on conditions.
Adsorption/desorption of mercury (II) by artificially weathered microplastics: Kinetics, isotherms, and influencing factors
Researchers studied how different types of weathered microplastics absorb and release mercury, finding that microplastics from wastewater treatment plants and rubber particles had the highest affinity for this toxic metal. While less than 3% of absorbed mercury was released in freshwater, up to 73% was released under conditions mimicking bird digestion, indicating that eating contaminated microplastics significantly increases mercury exposure. These findings are relevant to human health because they suggest that microplastics in seafood could deliver concentrated doses of toxic mercury during digestion.
Microplastic-Toxic Chemical Interaction: A Review Study on Quantified Levels, Mechanism and Implication
This review summarizes quantified levels of heavy metals and hydrophobic organic contaminants sorbed onto microplastics in environmental media, examining adsorption and desorption mechanisms and discussing health implications of ingested microplastics acting as vectors for toxic chemical transport.
Pollutant adsorption on microplastic and its release during digestion processes
Researchers investigated the adsorption of copper and PFAS onto polystyrene, polypropylene, and polyethylene microplastics and examined the subsequent release of these contaminants during simulated digestion processes. The study aimed to clarify the role of microplastics as vectors that increase contaminant bioavailability in marine biota.