Papers

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Article Tier 2

Size-Dependent Disruption of Lipid Metabolism by Polystyrene Micro- and Nanoplastics in Caenorhabditis elegans Revealed Through Multi-Omics and Functional Genetic Validation

Researchers used the model organism C. elegans to study how polystyrene particles of different sizes affect lipid metabolism, finding that both 100-nanometer and 1-micrometer particles disrupted fat storage and lipid processing. Multi-omics analysis identified four core genes governing the size-dependent metabolic disruption, and elevated levels of specific lipid metabolites confirmed that microplastics can meaningfully interfere with lipid homeostasis.

2026 Toxics
Article Tier 2

Food bacteria and synthetic microparticles of similar size influence pharyngeal pumping of Caenorhabditis elegans

Researchers found that polystyrene microbeads of similar size to food bacteria impaired pharyngeal pumping in C. elegans, with the degree of disruption depending on particle size and concentration, suggesting that physical properties of microplastics drive some toxic effects independently of chemical composition.

2021 Aquatic Toxicology 17 citations
Article Tier 2

Quantitative monitoring of microplastics and lipid metabolism in live zebrafish via hyperspectral stimulated Raman scattering microscopy

Researchers used spectral focusing hyperspectral stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) microscopy to longitudinally monitor microplastic uptake, size-dependent organ accumulation, and lipid metabolic changes in live zebrafish during development. They found that microplastic exposure disrupted hepatic lipid metabolism and energy homeostasis, with the SRS imaging approach enabling real-time, label-free tracking of microplastics and associated biochemical changes in living organisms.

2024
Article Tier 2

Studying Microplastic Incorporation into Corals Using CARS

Researchers used a label-free imaging technique called coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering to visualize microplastics incorporated into coral tissue and skeletons without the need for dyes or markers. They found that polyethylene beads were primarily incorporated in areas where coral tissue had been lost due to bleaching or physical damage, while healthy tissue contained minimal microplastics. The study suggests that stressed or unhealthy corals may be more vulnerable to microplastic incorporation.

2026 Environmental Science & Technology
Article Tier 2

Label-free stimulated Raman scattering imaging of intracellular microplastics in mammalian cells

Researchers used label-free stimulated Raman scattering imaging to visualize microplastic uptake and distribution inside mammalian cells without fluorescent labels, finding that intracellular microplastics were associated with elevated reactive oxygen species, reduced cell viability, and altered lipid metabolism.

2025
Article Tier 2

Label-Free Live-Cell Imaging of Internalized Microplastics and Cytoplasmic Organelles with Multicolor CARS Microscopy

Label-free multicolor coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CARS) microscopy was used to simultaneously visualize internalized microplastics and cellular organelles in live cells without requiring fluorescent staining. The approach enables real-time tracking of plastic particle interactions with intracellular structures, offering new insight into how microplastics behave inside human cells.

2022 Environmental Science & Technology 18 citations
Article Tier 2

Quantitative assessment and monitoring of microplastics and nanoplastics distributions and lipid metabolism in live zebrafish using hyperspectral stimulated Raman scattering microscopy

Researchers developed a new imaging technique to watch microplastics and nanoplastics accumulate in live zebrafish in real time, without needing dyes or labels. They found that these tiny plastic particles built up in the fish's digestive system and disrupted fat metabolism, providing direct visual evidence of how micro- and nanoplastics can interfere with basic biological processes.

2024 Environment International 20 citations
Article Tier 2

Correlative spectroscopy and microscopy analysis of micro- and nanoplastics in complex biological matrices

Researchers combined fluorescence microscopy, second harmonic generation imaging, and coherent Raman scattering to detect and map micro- and nanoplastics in lung cells, zebrafish, and mouse tissues. Polystyrene nanoplastics were found to cross the blood-brain barrier and accumulate in lipid-rich brain regions in animal models.

2024 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Correlative spectroscopy and microscopy analysis of micro- and nanoplastics in complex biological matrices

Researchers combined fluorescence, second harmonic generation, and coherent Raman scattering microscopy in a single instrument to image micro- and nanoplastics in lung cells, zebrafish, and mouse tissues. Polystyrene nanoplastics crossed the blood-brain barrier and accumulated in lipid-rich brain regions in mouse models.

2024 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Different Toxic Effects of Polystyrene Microplastics and Nanoplastics on Caenorhabditis elegans

Researchers compared the toxicity of 2-μm polystyrene microplastics and 0.1-μm nanoplastics in C. elegans, finding both impaired growth, locomotion, reproduction, and lifespan at 1 mg/L and above, with microplastics causing greater locomotion and reproductive toxicity and nanoplastics inducing stronger oxidative stress.

2025 Journal of Applied Toxicology
Article Tier 2

Dark-field hyperspectral microscopy for label-free microplastics and nanoplastics detection and identification in vivo: A Caenorhabditis elegans study

Researchers demonstrated that dark-field hyperspectral microscopy can visualize and chemically identify nano- and microplastics (down to 100 nm) in live C. elegans nematodes without labeling, differentiating multiple polymer types simultaneously within intestinal tissue.

2020 Environmental Pollution 62 citations
Article Tier 2

Polystyrene microbeads modulate the energy metabolism of the marine diatom Chaetoceros neogracile

The marine diatom Chaetoceros neogracile was exposed to amino-modified polystyrene microbeads of 0.5 and 2 μm, with detailed flow cytometry revealing disrupted energy metabolism including altered chlorophyll content, lipid accumulation, and cell size distribution at 2.5 μg/mL. The study provides high-resolution physiological data showing that microplastics can impair energy balance in marine phytoplankton without killing cells.

2019 Environmental Pollution 128 citations
Article Tier 2

Food availability is crucial for effects of 1-μm polystyrene beads on the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans in freshwater sediments

Researchers found that the effects of polystyrene microplastics on the nematode C. elegans in freshwater sediments depended critically on food availability, with negative impacts on reproduction only emerging under low-food conditions.

2022 Chemosphere 24 citations
Article Tier 2

Uptake of nanopolystyrene particles induces distinct metabolic profiles and toxic effects in Caenorhabditis elegans

Researchers exposed the nematode C. elegans to 50 nm and 200 nm nanopolystyrene particles and used metabolomics to show that particles disrupt energy metabolism — reducing TCA cycle intermediates and altering glucose and lactate — while also decreasing locomotion, reproduction, and inducing oxidative stress.

2018 Environmental Pollution 194 citations
Article Tier 2

Mass spectrometry imaging enables detection of MPs and their effects in Daphnia magna following acute exposure

Researchers used an advanced imaging technique called mass spectrometry imaging to track where microplastics accumulate inside water fleas after short-term exposure. They found that the tiny organisms ingested microplastics that concentrated in their gut, and the exposure altered their lipid metabolism. The technique offers a new way to visualize exactly where microplastics end up in small aquatic organisms and what biochemical changes they cause.

2025 Aquatic Toxicology 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Polystyrene (nano)microplastics cause size-dependent neurotoxicity, oxidative damage and other adverse effects inCaenorhabditis elegans

Researchers found that polystyrene micro- and nanoplastics cause neurotoxicity and oxidative damage in the model organism C. elegans, with effects varying by particle size. Smaller nanoscale particles tended to cause more severe toxic responses than larger microplastic particles. The study highlights that the size of plastic particles is an important factor in determining how harmful they are to living organisms.

2018 Environmental Science Nano 422 citations
Article Tier 2

Biochemical and physiological effects of multigenerational exposure to spheric polystyrene microplastics in Caenorhabditis elegans

Researchers found that multigenerational exposure of C. elegans to polystyrene microplastics at low concentrations triggered oxidative stress, increased detoxification enzyme activity, and caused accumulating physiological effects across five consecutive generations.

2023 Environmental Science and Pollution Research 10 citations
Article Tier 2

The toxic differentiation of micro- and nanoplastics verified by gene-edited fluorescent Caenorhabditis elegans

Researchers used gene-edited fluorescent C. elegans to demonstrate that nanoplastic toxicity is size- and charge-dependent, with 100 nm positively charged polystyrene particles causing the greatest harm through intestinal accumulation and oxidative stress.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 26 citations
Article Tier 2

Luminous Upconverted Nanoparticles as High-Sensitivity Optical Probes for Visualizing Nano- and Microplastics in Caenorhabditis elegans

Researchers used upconverted NaYF4:Yb3+/Er3+ nanoparticles as high-sensitivity optical probes to visualize the ingestion and biodistribution of polystyrene microplastics and nanoplastics in Caenorhabditis elegans in real time, overcoming autofluorescence limitations of conventional fluorescent probes.

2025 Sensors
Article Tier 2

Label-free detection of micro- and nanoplastics using dark-field hyperspectral and atomic force microscopies

Researchers demonstrated that dark-field hyperspectral microscopy could visualize and spectrally identify polystyrene, polymethacrylate, and melamine formaldehyde particles (100 nm to 2 µm) in living Caenorhabditis elegans in vivo, while atomic force microscopy in PeakForce Tapping mode resolved internalized versus surface-bound polystyrene particles (down to 500 nm) in human skin fibroblasts. Deep learning algorithms applied to enhanced dark-field images further enabled automated classification of pigmented microplastics, demonstrating a label-free toolkit for detecting and differentiating particles in biological systems.

2022 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Label-free detection of polystyrene nanoparticles in Daphnia magna using Raman confocal mapping

Researchers demonstrated that Raman confocal mapping can detect polystyrene nanoparticles inside Daphnia magna without labels or dyes, revealing particle accumulation in the gut and providing a non-invasive method for studying nanoplastic uptake in organisms.

2023 Nanoscale Advances 12 citations
Article Tier 2

Bacterial consumption by nematodes is disturbed by the presence of polystyrene beads: The roles of food dilution and pharyngeal pumping

Experiments with C. elegans showed that polystyrene beads (1 and 6 µm) and silica beads reduced bacterial food consumption by diluting food and impairing pharyngeal pumping, with the effect being size-dependent and more pronounced for larger microplastic beads.

2021 Environmental Pollution 30 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic ingestion decreases energy reserves in marine worms

Researchers exposed marine worms to microplastics and found that ingestion reduced the worms' energy reserves, demonstrating that microplastic ingestion imposes a measurable energetic cost that could affect growth, reproduction, and survival.

2013 Current Biology 1056 citations
Article Tier 2

Changes in life-history traits, antioxidant defense, energy metabolism and molecular outcomes in the cladoceran Daphnia pulex after exposure to polystyrene microplastics

Researchers exposed the freshwater zooplankton Daphnia pulex to polystyrene microplastics and observed dose-dependent effects on survival, antioxidant capacity, and energy metabolism. The study found that microplastics accumulated in the digestive tract, caused lipid oxidative damage, disrupted sugar and fat metabolism, and activated DNA repair mechanisms while inhibiting lipid metabolism pathways.

2022 Chemosphere 42 citations