Papers

61,005 results
|
Article Tier 2

Butylparaben-Loaded Aged Polystyrene Nanoplastics Amplify Its Toxicity in Microcystis aeruginosa via Quorum Sensing Suppression and Enhanced Microcystin-LR Release

Researchers found that aged nanoplastics (those weathered by the environment) are much better at absorbing and carrying the chemical butylparaben into harmful algae called Microcystis aeruginosa. The contaminated nanoplastics caused the algae to release more of a dangerous toxin called microcystin-LR, which can contaminate drinking water. This study shows how nanoplastics can amplify the harmful effects of other pollutants in water systems that supply human drinking water.

2025 Environmental Science & Technology 8 citations
Article Tier 2

Aging process does not necessarily enhance the toxicity of polystyrene microplastics to Microcystis aeruginosa

Researchers compared the properties and toxicity of pristine versus aged polystyrene microplastics of different sizes on the freshwater cyanobacterium Microcystis aeruginosa. The study found that the aging process does not necessarily increase microplastic toxicity, as aging induced changes in surface properties, functional groups, and zeta potential that could either enhance or reduce toxic effects depending on particle size.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 27 citations
Article Tier 2

Nanoplastics promote microcystin synthesis and release from cyanobacterial Microcystis aeruginosa.

Researchers showed that amino-modified polystyrene nanoplastics (PS-NH2) stimulate microcystin synthesis and release in the bloom-forming cyanobacterium Microcystis aeruginosa by inhibiting photosystem II and increasing membrane permeability. This is the first direct evidence linking nanoplastics to enhanced cyanotoxin production in freshwater blooms.

2025 Figshare
Article Tier 2

Nanoplastics Promote Microcystin Synthesis and Release from Cyanobacterial Microcystis aeruginosa

Researchers discovered that amino-modified polystyrene nanoplastics promote both the production and release of microcystin, a harmful toxin, from the cyanobacterium Microcystis aeruginosa. The nanoplastics inhibited photosynthesis, induced oxidative stress, and damaged cell membranes, which enhanced toxin synthesis and extracellular release. The findings suggest that nanoplastic pollution in freshwater ecosystems could worsen the threat of harmful algal blooms to aquatic ecology and human health.

2020 Environmental Science & Technology 232 citations
Article Tier 2

Microcystins-Loaded Aged Nanoplastics Provoke a Metabolic Shift in Human Liver Cells

Researchers found that aged polystyrene nanoplastics can adsorb significantly more microcystin toxins than pristine nanoplastics, and the toxin-loaded particles caused greater harm to human liver cells. The combined exposure triggered metabolic energy disruption, oxidative damage, and stress in cellular machinery. The study suggests that environmentally weathered nanoplastics may pose amplified health risks by carrying higher loads of harmful waterborne toxins.

2023 Environmental Science & Technology 23 citations
Article Tier 2

Polystyrene nanoplastics affect growth and microcystin production of Microcystis aeruginosa

Researchers exposed Microcystis aeruginosa to polystyrene nanoplastics across a range of concentrations and tracked effects on growth, cell aggregation, and microcystin production and release throughout the full growth cycle. They found a dose-dependent growth inhibition and increased aggregation at high concentrations, but nanoplastics at 50 mg/L paradoxically stimulated a period of rapid growth, with complex effects on intracellular and extracellular microcystin levels.

2020 Environmental Science and Pollution Research 67 citations
Article Tier 2

Aging amplifies the combined toxic effects of polystyrene nanoplastics and norfloxacin on human intestinal cells

Researchers investigated how environmental aging of polystyrene nanoplastics affects their combined toxicity with the antibiotic norfloxacin on human intestinal cells. They found that aged nanoplastics were taken up more readily by cells and significantly amplified the harmful effects of the antibiotic, including increased cell damage. The study suggests that weathered nanoplastics in the environment may pose greater health risks than fresh particles, especially when combined with other contaminants.

2025 Environmental Science Nano 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Toxic effects and metabolic response mechanisms of amino-modified polystyrene nanoplastics and arsenic on Microcystis aeruginosa

Researchers investigated the combined effects of amine-modified polystyrene nanoplastics and arsenic on a common freshwater cyanobacterium. They found that co-exposure intensified cellular stress, disrupted metabolic processes, and promoted the release of harmful toxins beyond what either pollutant caused individually. The findings reveal previously unrecognized risks to freshwater ecosystems when nanoplastics interact with heavy metal contaminants.

2025 Environmental Science Nano 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Sorption processes of wastewater contaminants on virgin and aged polystyrene microplastics: physicochemical changes and cellular toxicity assessment

Researchers exposed 1 µm polystyrene microplastics (virgin and thermo-oxidation aged) to wastewater and then assessed their adsorption behaviour and cytotoxicity. Aged MPs adsorbed more contaminants from wastewater and showed greater cytotoxicity to human cells than virgin MPs, demonstrating that environmental ageing amplifies the health risks of microplastics.

2025 Archives of Toxicology
Article Tier 2

Toxicity effects of polystyrene nanoplastics and arsenite on Microcystis aeruginosa

Researchers studied how two types of polystyrene nanoplastics with different surface properties interact with arsenic to affect freshwater algae. They found that nanoplastics with a sulfonic acid surface modification caused more severe growth inhibition and metabolic disruption in the algae, while both types reduced arsenic uptake by the organisms. The study highlights that the specific surface chemistry of nanoplastics significantly influences their environmental toxicity.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 37 citations
Article Tier 2

The photosynthetic toxicity of nano-polystyrene to Microcystis aeruginosa is influenced by surface modification and light intensity

Researchers found that amino-modified nanoplastics are more toxic to the cyanobacterium Microcystis aeruginosa than unmodified particles, and that high light intensity amplifies this toxicity by generating additional reactive oxygen species — including singlet oxygen and hydroxyl radicals — through interactions between visible light and the particle surface.

2024 Environmental Pollution 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Post-exposure recovery of Microcystis aeruginosa from nanoplastics stress: metabolic adaptation and damage resilience

Researchers exposed Microcystis aeruginosa cyanobacteria to polystyrene nanoplastics for 15 days, then transferred them to NP-free medium to study post-exposure recovery. Toxicity was concentration-dependent during exposure, and cells showed metabolic changes and only partial recovery after removal, suggesting persistent effects on cyanobacterial physiology.

2025 Frontiers in Marine Science
Article Tier 2

Mechanistic study on the increase of Microcystin-LR synthesis and release in Microcystis aeruginosa by amino-modified nano-plastics.

This study examined how amino-modified nanoplastics increase production and release of the toxin Microcystin-LR in the cyanobacterium Microcystis aeruginosa, revealing the cellular and gene-expression mechanisms behind this enhancement. The findings highlight how nanoplastic pollution can amplify harmful algal bloom toxicity.

2024 Journal of hazardous materials
Article Tier 2

Micro- and nanoplastic stress intensifies Microcystis aeruginosa physiology and toxin risks under environmentally relevant water chemistry conditions

Researchers exposed the cyanobacterium Microcystis aeruginosa to environmentally relevant concentrations of micro- and nanoplastics, finding both significantly enhanced algal biomass and microcystin toxin production, with nanoplastics additionally promoting extracellular toxin release.

2025 Journal of Hazardous Materials
Article Tier 2

Enhanced biotoxicity by co-exposure of aged polystyrene and ciprofloxacin: the adsorption and its influence factors

This study found that polystyrene microplastics aged by sunlight absorbed significantly more of the antibiotic ciprofloxacin than fresh microplastics, and the combination was more toxic to organisms than either pollutant alone. The aging process created more surface area and chemical binding sites on the plastic particles. This is important because it means weathered microplastics in the real world can concentrate antibiotics and deliver higher toxic doses to organisms, potentially contributing to both direct toxicity and antibiotic resistance.

2024 Environmental Geochemistry and Health 10 citations
Article Tier 2

UV-B radiation aging changed the environmental behavior of polystyrene micro-/nanoplastics-adsorption kinetics of BDE-47, plankton toxicities and joint toxicities with BDE-47

Researchers examined how UV-B radiation aging changes the behavior and toxicity of polystyrene micro- and nanoplastics in marine environments. They found that 30 days of UV-B aging increased the surface roughness, hydrophobicity, and pollutant adsorption capacity of the particles, while also increasing their individual toxicity to marine plankton. The study suggests that environmentally aged microplastics may pose different and potentially greater ecological risks than pristine particles.

2024 Journal of Hazardous Materials 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Adsorption of Macrolide Antibiotics by Aged Microplastics of Different Sizes: Mechanisms and Effects

Researchers investigated how aging affects the ability of polystyrene microplastics to adsorb macrolide antibiotics in water, testing two particle sizes under simulated natural aging conditions. They found that aging increased surface roughness and oxygen-containing functional groups on the microplastics, significantly enhancing their ability to adsorb azithromycin, clarithromycin, and erythromycin. The findings suggest that weathered microplastics in the environment may carry higher loads of antibiotic contaminants than pristine particles.

2025 Nanomaterials 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Combined effects of microplastics and excess boron on Microcystis aeruginosa

Researchers studied the combined effects of microplastics and excess boron on a common freshwater cyanobacterium (Microcystis aeruginosa). They found that amino-modified polystyrene microplastics were the most harmful, inhibiting growth and worsening boron toxicity, while other surface-modified types actually stimulated growth. The study reveals that the surface chemistry of microplastics plays a key role in how they interact with other pollutants to affect aquatic microorganisms.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 19 citations
Article Tier 2

Combined toxicity of nanoplastics and microcystin-LR to sulfate-reducing bacteria and the underlying mechanisms

Researchers exposed freshwater aquaculture microcosms to polyethylene nanoplastics and the algal toxin microcystin-LR, finding that nanoplastics strongly adsorb the toxin and that combined exposure disrupts sulfur cycling bacteria more severely than either contaminant alone, raising ecological concerns for aquaculture water quality.

2026 Environmental Pollution
Article Tier 2

Modifying luteolin’s algicidal effect on Microcystis by virgin and diversely-aged polystyrene microplastics: Unveiling novel mechanisms through microalgal adaptive strategies

Polystyrene microplastics at concentrations of 0.5-50 mg/L -- both fresh and aged -- weakened the ability of the natural algicide luteolin to suppress Microcystis cyanobacterial blooms by stimulating the algae to produce more protective exopolymers and form aggregates with the plastic particles.

2024 Environmental Pollution 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Micrometer scale polystyrene plastics of varying concentrations and particle sizes inhibit growth and upregulate microcystin-related gene expression in Microcystis aeruginosa

Researchers found that polystyrene microplastics inhibited the growth of the cyanobacterium Microcystis aeruginosa in a dose- and size-dependent manner, with smaller particles and higher concentrations causing greater growth suppression. Notably, microplastic exposure also upregulated genes related to microcystin production, suggesting that microplastics could potentially increase the toxicity of harmful algal blooms.

2021 Journal of Hazardous Materials 97 citations
Article Tier 2

The presence of polystyrene nanoplastics enhances the MCLR uptake in zebrafish leading to the exacerbation of oxidative liver damage

Researchers found that polystyrene nanoplastics enhanced the uptake of the toxin microcystin-LR in zebrafish liver over three months of co-exposure, exacerbating oxidative damage and cellular swelling compared to microcystin exposure alone.

2021 The Science of The Total Environment 40 citations
Article Tier 2

Distinct responses of Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1 exposed to different levels of polystyrene nanoplastics

Researchers examined the molecular mechanisms by which polystyrene nanoplastics affect Pseudomonas aeruginosa, finding dose-dependent responses in growth, metabolism, and virulence gene expression that reveal how nanoplastics interact with environmentally relevant bacteria.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 36 citations
Article Tier 2

Microcystis aeruginosa's exposure to an antagonism of nanoplastics and MWCNTs: The disorders in cellular and metabolic processes

Researchers examined the combined effects of polystyrene nanoplastics and multi-walled carbon nanotubes on the cyanobacterium Microcystis aeruginosa, discovering antagonistic interactions that disrupted cellular and metabolic processes in this freshwater organism.

2021 Chemosphere 34 citations