Papers

20 results
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Article Tier 2

Ecological and physiological risks of micro- and nanoplastics in rice agroecosystems: Challenges and engineering-based mitigation approaches

Researchers reviewed how micro- and nanoplastics harm rice — a staple crop feeding billions — by disrupting root growth, reducing photosynthesis, altering soil microbes, and making heavy metals more available to plants. The review proposes that ecological engineering strategies like microbial bioremediation and organic soil amendments could help protect agricultural land from plastic contamination.

2026 Journal of Ecological Engineering
Article Tier 2

Fate of nano/microplastics and associated toxic pollutants in paddy ecosystems: Current knowledge and future perspectives

Researchers reviewed how micro- and nanoplastics enter rice paddies through irrigation, mulch films, and atmospheric deposition, then harm soil health and rice plant growth by disrupting nutrient cycles and increasing oxidative stress. Their findings are especially significant because rice feeds more than half the world's population, yet research on plastic contamination in paddy systems remains very limited.

2024 Earth Critical Zone 3 citations
Article Tier 2

[Adverse Effects and Underlying Mechanisms of Soil Microplastics on Crops and Its Preventive Strategies].

This review summarizes the pollution status of microplastics in agricultural soils and their adverse effects on crops, including mechanical damage, oxidative stress, and genotoxicity leading to disrupted plant growth and metabolism. Researchers also examined how hazardous substances released from microplastics and contaminants adsorbed onto their surfaces contribute to soil ecosystem harm. The study identifies source control and biodegradation as the most promising strategies for reducing microplastic risks to crop production.

2025 PubMed 1 citations
Meta Analysis Tier 1

The effect of microplastic pollution on rice growth, paddy soil properties, and greenhouse gas emissions: A global meta-analysis

This global meta-analysis of 40 studies found that microplastics reduce rice biomass by inducing oxidative stress and inhibiting photosynthesis, while depleting soil nitrogen, phosphorus, and organic carbon. Microplastics also stimulate nitrous oxide emissions from paddy soils, posing a dual threat to food security and climate through impaired rice production and increased greenhouse gas output.

2025 Environmental Research 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic Pollution: An Emerging Threat to Terrestrial Plants and Insights into Its Remediation Strategies

This review highlights the emerging threat of microplastic pollution to terrestrial plants and agroecosystems, summarizing sources, interactions with soil and crops, and potential remediation strategies for safe agricultural practices.

2022 Plants 82 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic: Evaluating the Impact on Soil-Microbes and Plant System

This review examines how microplastics affect soil microbial communities and plant systems in agricultural settings, documenting impacts on soil health, microbial diversity, and crop physiology. As microplastics accumulate in farmland soils through irrigation, sludge application, and plastic mulches, their effects on the soil ecosystem that underpins food production are a growing concern.

2023 ACS symposium series 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Tiny toxins, big problems: the hidden threat of microplastic in agroecosystems

This review examines the impacts of microplastic contamination in agricultural soils, covering sources from plastic mulch and irrigation, effects on soil structure, water retention, microbial diversity, and nutrient cycling, and consequences for crop health and food safety.

2025 Plant Science Today
Article Tier 2

Micro and nano-plastics on environmental health: a review on future thrust in agro-ecotoxicology management

This review examines the growing body of evidence on how microplastics and nanoplastics affect plant health, soil microbial communities, and agricultural productivity. The study highlights that plastic accumulation in agricultural soils can alter crop growth and yield while disrupting soil ecosystem dynamics, and calls for greater attention to agro-ecotoxicology management to address these emerging threats to food production.

2025 Environmental Geochemistry and Health 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in agroecosystems: Soil-plant dynamics and effective remediation approaches

This review examines how microplastic pollution from sources like plastic mulch films and waste degradation affects crops in agricultural ecosystems. Researchers identified five key mechanisms of harm, including interference with root systems and nutrient uptake, induction of oxidative stress, and alteration of soil microbial communities. The study also evaluates remediation approaches and highlights that microplastics acting as carriers for other pollutants may create compounding toxicological effects on food crops.

2024 Chemosphere 17 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in Agricultural Soils: An Emerging Threat to Soil Health, Microbial Ecology, Crop Productivity, and Food Safety

This review examines how microplastics accumulate in agricultural soils from sources like plastic mulch, sewage sludge, and atmospheric deposition. Researchers found that these particles can disrupt soil microbial communities, harm plant health, and potentially enter the human food chain. The study highlights the urgent need for mitigation strategies to address this growing but often overlooked form of pollution in farmland.

2025 International Journal of Plant & Soil Science 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic: Interaction with Agroecosystem and Microbial Remediation

This review examines the interactions between microplastics and agroecosystems, covering impacts on soil physical and chemical properties, microbial communities, and plant uptake, while also surveying microbial remediation strategies. It highlights a research gap in terrestrial and agricultural ecosystem studies relative to aquatic environments and calls for greater focus on soil microplastic dynamics.

2025
Article Tier 2

The Effect of Microplastic Pollution on Soil, Plants and Soil Microbes and Its Remediation

This review summarized evidence for microplastic effects on soil properties, plant growth, soil microbes, and food safety, identifying microplastic pollution as a significant emerging threat to terrestrial ecosystems. The authors also reviewed bioremediation and physical removal strategies as potential remediation approaches.

2022 Egyptian Journal of Soil Science 13 citations
Article Tier 2

Plastics aplenty in paddy lands: incidence of microplastics in Indian rice fields and ecotoxicity on paddy field phytoplankton

Researchers found microplastic contamination in the surface water of rice paddy fields in Kerala, India, with polyethylene and polypropylene fragments being the most common types. Microplastic levels were three times higher during the planting phase than near harvest, and the plastics affected the growth of tiny organisms that naturally live in rice paddies. These findings are concerning because rice is a dietary staple, and microplastics in rice paddies could potentially enter the food supply.

2025 Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 7 citations
Article Tier 2

Ecological risks of microplastics contamination with green solutions and future perspectives

This review covers the ecological risks of microplastic contamination in farmland, particularly from plastic mulch films used in agriculture. Microplastics in soil affect water retention, nutrient cycling, microbial communities, and even greenhouse gas emissions. The authors discuss green solutions like biodegradable alternatives and soil remediation techniques that could reduce microplastic buildup in the food production system.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 49 citations
Article Tier 2

Investigation of the effects of polyethylene microplastics at environmentally relevant concentrations on the plant-soil-microbiota system: A two-year field trial

Researchers conducted a two-year field trial to study how polyethylene microplastics at environmentally relevant concentrations affect crops, soil, and microbial communities in a rice-wheat rotation system. They found that microplastics did not harm wheat growth but actually increased rice grain weight and plant height, while reducing soil nutrient levels including nitrogen and phosphorus. The study reveals that microplastics can alter soil bacterial communities and disrupt metabolic processes in ways that differ between crop seasons.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 13 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in agroecosystems: A review of effects on soil biota and key soil functions

This review examines how microplastic and nanoplastic contamination in agricultural soils affects soil organisms and ecological functions. Researchers found that plastics enter farmland through multiple pathways including plastic mulch, sewage sludge, and irrigation water, and once present they alter soil properties and exhibit toxic behavior toward soil biota. The study identifies significant knowledge gaps about the long-term impacts of microplastic accumulation on agricultural productivity and food safety.

2022 Journal of Plant Nutrition and Soil Science 79 citations
Article Tier 2

Micro (nano) plastic pollution: The ecological influence on soil-plant system and human health.

This review examines how micro- and nanoplastics affect soil health, plant growth, and food quality, finding that these particles accumulate in plant root systems and can reduce crop yields and alter nutritional content. Since contaminated soil and water are increasingly delivering microplastics to food crops, these findings are directly relevant to agricultural food safety.

2021 The Science of the total environment
Article Tier 2

Microplastics have rice cultivar-dependent impacts on grain yield and quality, and nitrogenous gas losses from paddy, but not on soil properties

A pot experiment with different rice cultivars found that polyethylene microplastics affected grain yield, quality, and nitrogen cycling in a cultivar-dependent manner, indicating that genetic background modulates plant sensitivity to microplastic contamination. The findings have implications for agricultural management in regions where microplastic-contaminated soils are common.

2022 Journal of Hazardous Materials 61 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics meet invasive plants: Unraveling the ecological hazards to agroecosystems

This study examined how microplastic contamination in soil combines with invasive plant species to affect rice crops. The combination of both stressors caused greater changes in rice metabolism and antioxidant responses than either stressor alone. These findings highlight how microplastic pollution in agricultural soil can interact with other environmental challenges to threaten food safety and crop health.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 70 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics Modulate Carbon Sequestration in Paddy Fields by Regulating Rhizosphere Silicon Mobility

Microplastics were found to modulate carbon sequestration in paddy fields by altering microbial activity and organic matter decomposition rates. The study highlights that plastic contamination in rice paddies can disrupt the carbon cycle, potentially offsetting the carbon storage capacity of these ecosystems.

2025 Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry 1 citations