Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Quality Criteria for the Analysis of Microplastic in Biota Samples: A Critical Review

Ten quality criteria were applied to review recent microplastic ingestion studies in aquatic biota, finding wide variation in methodological rigor including inadequate sample sizes, poor contamination controls, and inconsistent polymer identification methods. The authors propose a standardized quality assessment framework to improve comparability of microplastic ingestion data across studies.

2018 Environmental Science & Technology 528 citations
Article Tier 2

Occurrence, Distribution, and Extraction Methods of Microplastics in Marine Organisms

This review synthesizes global data on microplastic occurrence and distribution across marine organisms, comparing the advantages and limitations of different extraction and identification methods used in the field.

2024
Article Tier 2

A critical view on microplastic quantification in aquatic organisms

Researchers critically reviewed the methods used to quantify microplastics in aquatic organisms including zooplankton, bivalves, and fish. The study highlights that no standardized methodology exists for measuring microplastic contamination in biota, which makes comparing results across studies difficult and underscores the need for consistent analytical protocols.

2015 Environmental Research 463 citations
Article Tier 2

Recent advances in the analysis methodologies for microplastics in aquatic organisms: current knowledge and research challenges

This review examines recent advances in analytical methods for detecting and quantifying microplastics in aquatic organisms, identifying key sources of variability across studies and outlining research challenges needed to improve comparability and standardization.

2020 Analytical Methods 73 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

Marine mammals and microplastics: A systematic review and call for standardisation

Microplastics were found in the gastrointestinal tracts of marine mammals in all but one of 30 studies reviewed, with 0-88 particles per animal, and were detected in pinniped scat in 8 of 10 studies, though considerable methodological inconsistencies make cross-study comparisons difficult.

2020 Environmental Pollution 235 citations
Article Tier 2

Sampling, Isolating and Identifying Microplastics Ingested by Fish and Invertebrates *

This methodological review critically evaluated sampling, isolation, and identification techniques for microplastics ingested by fish and invertebrates, identifying common sources of error including contamination during processing, particle loss, and misidentification — and recommending standardized protocols.

2020 85 citations
Article Tier 2

Sampling, isolating and identifying microplastics ingested by fish and invertebrates

This study reviewed sampling and identification methods for microplastics ingested by fish and invertebrates, evaluating each approach for accuracy, reproducibility, and applicability to different species and sample types.

2016 Analytical Methods 945 citations
Article Tier 2

Methods for sampling, processing, identification,and quantification of microplastics in the marine environment

This paper reviews and compares the various methods used to collect, process, identify, and quantify microplastics across different environmental samples. It highlights the lack of standardized protocols as a major obstacle to comparing results across studies and calls for methodological harmonization.

2020 Oceanography in Japan 12 citations
Article Tier 2

Overview of global status of plastic presence in marine vertebrates

A review of 112 studies on plastic ingestion by marine vertebrates (sea turtles, cetaceans, fish) found widespread occurrence across species and ocean regions, with methodological inconsistencies preventing reliable global comparisons and underscoring the need for standardized protocols.

2020 Global Change Biology 118 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in the Marine Environment: A Review of the Methods Used for Identification and Quantification

This review covered the methods used to identify and characterize microplastics in marine environmental samples, evaluating the strengths and limitations of visual, spectroscopic, and chemical approaches for field and laboratory analysis.

2012 Environmental Science & Technology 5047 citations
Article Tier 2

Quantifying ingested debris in marine megafauna: a review and recommendations for standardization

This review examined published methods for quantifying ingested plastic debris in marine megafauna — including whales, turtles, and sharks — and found wide variation in reporting practices. The authors propose standardized protocols for sample collection, processing, and data reporting to enable meaningful comparisons across species and regions.

2016 Analytical Methods 473 citations
Review Tier 2

Recovering microplastics from marine samples: A review of current practices

This review compared the published methods for separating and identifying microplastics from seawater, sediment, and marine organisms, assessing their efficiency, processing time, and potential to damage particles. It highlights the lack of standardized protocols as a major barrier to comparing results across studies.

2017 Marine Pollution Bulletin 254 citations
Article Tier 2

Recommended best practices for plastic and litter ingestion studies in marine birds: Collection, processing, and reporting

This paper proposed standardized best practices for sampling, processing, and reporting plastic ingestion in marine birds, aiming to improve consistency across studies and enable meaningful large-scale comparisons.

2019 FACETS 147 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics Monitoring in Marine Environment

This review summarises the need for standardised methods for microplastic sampling and analysis across seawater, beach sediment, seabed sediment, and marine organisms to enable consistent spatiotemporal comparisons of microplastic abundance in marine environments.

2017 Omni-Akuatika 24 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics’ Impact on the Environment and the Challenging Selection of Reliable Key Biomonitors

This review examines the challenges of using living organisms as reliable monitors for microplastic pollution in the environment. Different species accumulate microplastics at different rates depending on their habitat, feeding habits, and body size, making it hard to compare results across studies. Establishing standardized biomonitors is important for accurately tracking how much microplastic contamination is reaching wildlife and, ultimately, the human food supply.

2024 Water 17 citations
Article Tier 2

Plastics in biota: technological readiness level of current methodologies

Researchers evaluated the scientific readiness of current laboratory methods for detecting and measuring plastic particles inside living organisms — from fish to insects — identifying which techniques are reproducible enough to be used in standardized environmental monitoring programs. Harmonizing these methods is critical for generating consistent, comparable data on how plastics accumulate across food webs.

2024 Microplastics and Nanoplastics 16 citations
Article Tier 2

Overview of plastic ingestion in seabirds: a call for harmonized methods

This review examined over 2,500 publications on plastic ingestion in seabirds to map methodological approaches for sampling, detection, and analysis of macro- and microplastics across species. The authors identified major gaps including over-reliance on visual classification, limited use of chemical identification techniques, and inconsistent protocols, issuing a call for harmonized standardized methods to enable meaningful cross-study comparisons.

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

Microplastic Extraction from Marine Vertebrate Digestive Tracts, Regurgitates and Scats: A Protocol for Researchers from All Experience Levels

This paper presents a standardized protocol for extracting and identifying microplastics from the digestive systems of marine vertebrates (mammals, birds, turtles, and fish). Having consistent, accessible methods is essential for generating comparable data on how much plastic wildlife across different species and regions are ingesting.

2018 BIO-PROTOCOL 61 citations
Article Tier 2

Identifying Microplastic Contamination in Marine Biota

This study developed and evaluated methods for identifying microplastic contamination in marine biota, comparing visual sorting, spectroscopic, and chemical digestion approaches for extracting and confirming plastic particles from tissue samples.

2024
Article Tier 2

Microplastic and nanoplastic analysis methods, tests and reference materials

Researchers examined current microplastic analysis methods, reference tests, and reference materials, highlighting the limitations of manual counting approaches and evaluating alternatives to enable more scalable, consistent, and cost-effective monitoring of plastic litter accumulation in ocean environments.

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

A review of methods for measuring microplastics in aquatic environments

This review critically evaluates methods used to measure microplastics in aquatic environments, covering sampling design, sample processing, and spectroscopic identification, and identifies the most significant sources of methodological variation. Standardizing these methods is essential for generating comparable data across studies and enabling robust environmental risk assessment.

2018 Environmental Science and Pollution Research 361 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in Global Marine Waters and Biota: Effectiveness of Potential Bioindicators in Mirroring Local Pollution Levels

This review assessed the global occurrence of microplastics in marine waters and biota and evaluated the effectiveness of potential bioindicator species for monitoring plastic pollution. The authors find that standardizing bioindicator protocols is essential for tracking the effectiveness of microplastic mitigation efforts.

2023 Environmental Monitoring and Contaminants Research 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Validation of an optimised protocol for quantification of microplastics in heterogenous samples: A case study using green turtle chyme

This paper developed and validated an optimized protocol for extracting and quantifying microplastics from the gut contents of marine organisms. Having a reliable, standardized method is essential for generating consistent data on microplastic ingestion across different species and studies.

2018 MethodsX 22 citations
Article Tier 2

New techniques for the detection of microplastics in sediments and field collected organisms

Researchers developed new techniques for detecting microplastics in sediment samples and for collecting particles in the field, improving the reliability and sensitivity of methods used to monitor environmental microplastic contamination.

2013 Marine Pollution Bulletin 971 citations