Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

A protocol for lixiviation of micronized plastics for aquatic toxicity testing

Researchers developed a standardized protocol for creating plastic leachate solutions to test the toxicity of chemicals that microplastics release into water. Different types of microplastics released varying amounts of harmful additives, and the resulting leachates were toxic to marine organisms at environmentally relevant concentrations. Having a consistent testing method is important because it allows scientists to compare results across studies and better assess real-world risks.

2023 Chemosphere 44 citations
Article Tier 2

Understanding hazardous concentrations of microplastics in fresh water using non-traditional toxicity data

Researchers developed hazard concentration thresholds for microplastics in freshwater using non-traditional toxicity data, accounting for environmentally relevant sizes, shapes, and polymer types to provide more realistic governance standards.

2022 Journal of Hazardous Materials 24 citations
Article Tier 2

Mechanisms of Sorption of Pharmaceutical and Personal Care Products to Microplastics

This thesis investigated how pharmaceutical and personal care product chemicals sorb onto high-density polyethylene microplastic fragments, and how this affects the combined toxicity to aquatic organisms. Microplastics can carry drug compounds and personal care chemicals from wastewater into aquatic environments, concentrating pollutant exposure for marine organisms.

2021 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics as vectors of pharmaceuticals in aquatic organisms – An overview of their environmental implications

Researchers reviewed how microplastics act as "vectors" for pharmaceutical contaminants in aquatic environments, absorbing drugs onto their surfaces and then releasing them inside organisms after ingestion — potentially amplifying the toxicity of pharmaceuticals throughout the food web.

2021 Case Studies in Chemical and Environmental Engineering 100 citations
Article Tier 2

Gaps in aquatic toxicological studies of microplastics

This paper identifies key gaps in aquatic toxicological studies of microplastics, arguing that most studies use unrealistic concentrations or particle types and calling for more ecologically relevant experimental designs to better assess real-world risks.

2017 Chemosphere 113 citations
Article Tier 2

Liposome-mediated delivery of challenging chemicals to aid environmental assessment of Bioaccumulative (B) and Toxic (T) properties

Researchers used liposomes to reliably deliver poorly water-soluble chemicals to zooplankton in toxicity tests, overcoming a common limitation of standard ecotoxicological assays. This improved delivery method makes it easier to accurately assess the environmental risks of hydrophobic plastic-associated chemicals.

2020 Scientific Reports 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Are Fragrance Encapsulates Taken Up by Aquatic and Terrestrial Invertebrate Species?

The uptake of fragrance encapsulates by aquatic invertebrates and earthworms was investigated, finding that these micron-sized polymer capsules used in laundry products can be ingested by freshwater and soil organisms, qualifying them as microplastics and raising questions about their ecological fate after release through washing.

2021 Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 11 citations
Article Tier 2

Formulation of a Target Plastic Model to estimate critical plastic burdens of toxicants.

This study created a "Target Plastic Model" to estimate the concentration of toxic chemicals in common plastics at which they would harm aquatic organisms, adapting an established chemical toxicity framework to plastic polymers. The model accurately predicted lethal concentrations for fish exposed to a range of chemicals, offering a new tool for assessing the risks posed by plastic-adsorbed pollutants and improving the design of passive sampling devices used in environmental monitoring.

2023 1 citations
Article Tier 2

An assessment of the concentration of pharmaceuticals adsorbed on microplastics

This study developed and validated an analytical method to measure pharmaceutical compounds adsorbed onto microplastic particles in marine water samples. Microplastics can concentrate pharmaceuticals from water and carry them through marine food chains, potentially delivering drug compounds to fish and other organisms at elevated concentrations.

2020 Chemosphere 32 citations
Article Tier 2

Moving Toward Standardized Toxicity Testing Procedures with Particulates by Dietary Exposure of Gammarids

This paper discusses challenges in standardizing ecotoxicological testing for particulate materials and sparingly soluble substances, which behave differently from soluble chemicals in standard aquatic toxicity tests. It proposes dietary exposure approaches as a more realistic method for assessing microplastic toxicity to aquatic organisms.

2021 Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 14 citations
Article Tier 2

Toxicity Assessment of Microconstituents in the Environment

This review describes the fate, behavior, transport, and toxicity assessment of microplastics in aquatic environments, covering ecotoxicological test methods and their limitations, and calls for reduced plastic use and promotion of eco-friendly alternatives that degrade safely.

2023 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Association of hazardous compounds with microplastics in freshwater ecosystems

This book chapter reviews how hazardous chemical compounds — including pesticides, pharmaceuticals, and heavy metals — associate with microplastics in freshwater ecosystems. Microplastics act as carriers for these compounds, potentially increasing their bioavailability to aquatic organisms and complicating risk assessment.

2020 IWA Publishing eBooks 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Effect of microplastics on the environmental behavior of emerging contaminants in aquatic matrices

This study examines how microplastics affect the environmental behavior of emerging contaminants in aquatic systems. Microplastics can adsorb other pollutants and alter their bioavailability, potentially increasing or decreasing toxic effects depending on the chemicals and environmental conditions.

2023 Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations (Universidade de São Paulo)