Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Microplastic contamination in Indian rice: A comprehensive characterization and health risk assessment

Researchers found microplastics in all samples of Indian rice tested, averaging about 30 particles per 100 grams, with polyethylene and PET being the most common types. The study estimated daily microplastic intake from rice consumption for men, women, and children, highlighting that this dietary staple is a potential pathway for plastic particles to enter the human body.

2024 Journal of Hazardous Materials 20 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics retrieval from commercial rice brands in india: Characterization, dietary exposure, and risk assessment

Researchers detected and characterized microplastics in commercial rice brands from India for the first time, finding contamination in a staple food consumed by hundreds of millions of people. Fiber and fragment morphotypes dominated, with polymer identification confirming synthetic plastic rather than processing artifacts.

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

Microplastics retrieval from commercial rice brands in india: Characterization, dietary exposure, and risk assessment

Researchers detected microplastics for the first time in commercial rice brands sold in India, using FT-IR and Raman spectroscopy to identify polymer types. The findings raise concerns about dietary microplastic exposure through one of the world's most widely consumed staple foods.

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

Screening method for differentiation of plastic and non-plastic microparticles contaminating store-bought rice

Researchers tested five brands of store-bought rice and found plastic microparticles in all of them regardless of packaging type, with concentrations as high as 12 particles per gram of rice. Using simple optical microscopy and infrared spectroscopy, the study shows that a low-cost screening method can quickly distinguish true microplastics from other particles like rice starch or cellulose, an important step toward routine food safety monitoring.

2024 Spectrochimica Acta Part A Molecular and Biomolecular Spectroscopy 2 citations
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

Microplastic–Cadmium Interaction in Paddy Soils: An Overlooked Risk Exacerbating Cadmium Contamination in Rice and Microbial Dysbiosis

Scientists found that tiny plastic particles in rice paddies make it easier for the toxic metal cadmium to get into rice plants, leading to more contamination in the rice we eat. When microplastics and cadmium are both present in flooded rice fields, rice plants grow less and absorb significantly more of the harmful metal compared to when only cadmium is present. This matters because cadmium can cause serious health problems like kidney damage and cancer, so this research suggests that plastic pollution may be making our rice less safe to eat.

2026 Plants
Article Tier 2

Exploration of Single and Co-Toxic Effects of Polypropylene Micro-Plastics and Cadmium on Rice (Oryza sativa L.)

Researchers investigated the single and combined toxic effects of polypropylene microplastics and cadmium on rice plants, finding that co-exposure altered cadmium bioavailability and produced compounded negative effects on plant growth and development.

2022 Nanomaterials 32 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

Microplastics in rice: a systematic review

This systematic review summarizes existing research on microplastics found in rice, a staple food for billions of people. It highlights that microplastics and their chemical additives have been detected in rice products and may contribute to chronic inflammation and hormone disruption, though more research is needed on the health effects.

2025 RevSALUS - Revista Científica da Rede Académica das Ciências da Saúde da Lusofonia
Article Tier 2

Effects of microplastics on growth and metabolism of rice (Oryza sativa L.)

Researchers found that polystyrene and polyvinyl chloride microplastics inhibited rice growth and disrupted ionic homeostasis and antioxidant metabolism in a dose-dependent manner, with PVC microplastics causing more severe effects than polystyrene.

2022 Chemosphere 153 citations
Article Tier 2

Interactions between phenanthrene and polystyrene micro/nano plastics: Implications for rice (Oryza sativa L.) toxicity.

Researchers investigated how polystyrene micro/nano plastics of different particle sizes and surface charges interact with phenanthrene and affect toxicity in rice (Oryza sativa L.), finding that these interactions significantly alter the biological effects and potential health risks of combined contaminant exposure.

2023 Environmental pollution (Barking, Essex : 1987)
Article Tier 2

Are we eating microplastics with our staple food? A pioneering study of microplastic contamination in store-bought rice and cooked rice in Bangladesh

In the first study of its kind in Bangladesh, researchers analyzed microplastic contamination in 15 commonly consumed store-bought rice varieties in both raw and cooked forms. The study found microplastics present in rice samples and estimated potential human exposure through this staple food, highlighting a previously overlooked dietary source of microplastic intake.

2025 Environmental Science and Pollution Research 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Plastics aplenty in paddy lands: incidence of microplastics in two rice cultivars of Kerala, India, and its impact on primary producers found in paddy fields

This study reports microplastic contamination in paddy fields and two rice cultivars in Kerala, India, raising concerns about human dietary exposure to microplastics through staple crops. The presence of microplastics in rice cultivation environments represents an understudied pathway for human ingestion.

2023
Article Tier 2

Life-long impacts of nanoplastics to rice plant (Oryza sativa L.): Decreased grain yield with perturbed metallome and soil microbiome

Researchers studied how nano-sized PET plastic particles affect rice plants throughout their entire life cycle at concentrations found in real-world environments. They found that nanoplastic exposure reduced grain quality and yield, disrupted mineral nutrient balance, and significantly altered the soil microbial community. The study highlights a potential threat to global food security, since rice is a staple food for billions of people.

2025 Journal of Hazardous Materials 3 citations
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
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

Under flooding conditions, controlled-release fertiliser coated microplastics affect the growth and accumulation of cadmium in rice by increasing the fluidity of cadmium and interfering with metabolic pathways

Researchers studied the combined effects of polyurethane controlled-release fertilizer-coated microplastics and cadmium on rice growth under flooding conditions, finding that microplastics increased cadmium mobility in soil and disrupted plant metabolic pathways. The results highlight that microplastic contamination in paddy systems can worsen heavy metal accumulation in rice under flooding.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 25 citations
Article Tier 2

Size-dependent effects of polystyrene micro- and nanoplastics on the quality of rice grains and the metabolism mechanism

Researchers found that tiny polystyrene plastic particles (under 100 nanometers) were absorbed by rice roots and traveled up into the grain, reducing protein content by up to 29%. The smallest particles weakened the plant's natural defenses by disrupting sugar metabolism. This means microplastics in soil could be silently lowering the nutritional quality of rice that people eat.

2025 Environmental Pollution 7 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics contamination in selected staple consumer food products

Researchers in the Philippines found microplastics in common staple foods including sea salt, sugar, rice, and fish sauce, with sea salt having the highest contamination at about 471 particles per kilogram. PVC from processing equipment and PET from plastic packaging were the most common types found. This study provides direct evidence that people are consuming microplastics through everyday foods, raising questions about the safety of plastic materials used in food manufacturing and packaging.

2024 Journal of Food Science and Technology 16 citations
Article Tier 2

Preliminary observation of microplastic contamination in some spice-salt samples purchased in Hanoi city

Researchers analyzed microplastic contamination in spice-salt samples purchased in Hanoi, Vietnam, finding concentrations ranging from 320 to 1,880 particles per kilogram, with fibers comprising 99% of particles and blue, red, and black colors predominating, representing an early characterization of microplastic exposure through seasoning products.

2022 Heavy metals and arsenic concentrations in water agricultural soil and rice in Ngan Son district Bac Kan province Vietnam 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics affect rice (Oryza sativa L.) quality by interfering metabolite accumulation and energy expenditure pathways: A field study

Researchers conducted a field study examining how polystyrene microplastics affect rice grain quality at the molecular level using metabolomic and transcriptomic analysis. They found that microplastic exposure interfered with metabolite accumulation and energy pathways in the rice plants, ultimately reducing grain quality. The study provides real-world evidence that microplastic contamination in agricultural soils can directly compromise the nutritional quality of a major food crop.

2021 Journal of Hazardous Materials 193 citations
Article Tier 2

Risk assessment of microplastic in commercial salt sold in Malaysia

Researchers conducted a risk assessment of microplastics in commercial table salt sold in Malaysia, finding that contaminated seawater used during sea salt production introduces microplastics into a widely consumed daily food ingredient with potential adverse health effects.

2023 UiTM Institutional Repositories (Universiti Teknologi MARA)
Article Tier 2

Polyethylene and polypropylene microplastics reduce chemisorption of cadmium in paddy soil and increase its bioaccessibility and bioavailability

Researchers found that polyethylene and polypropylene microplastics reduce cadmium chemisorption in paddy soil while increasing its bioaccessibility and bioavailability, suggesting that microplastic contamination in rice paddies could enhance heavy metal uptake by crops and human dietary exposure.

2023 Journal of Hazardous Materials 51 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic co-exposure elevates cadmium accumulation in mouse tissue after rice consumption: Mechanisms and health implications

In a mouse study, eating cadmium-contaminated rice alongside common microplastics led to 17-38% more cadmium accumulating in body tissues than eating the rice alone. The microplastics changed gut bacteria composition, which increased cadmium solubility and transport across the intestinal wall. This is directly relevant to human health because both microplastics and cadmium are common contaminants in rice, and their combined exposure may increase toxic metal absorption.

2024 Journal of Hazardous Materials 11 citations
Clinical Trial Tier 1

Effect of High-Density Polyethylene, Polyvinyl Chloride and Low-Density Polyethylene Microplastics on Seeding of Paddy

This study tested how three common types of plastic microparticles affect rice seedling growth, finding that they can interfere with early plant development. The results matter for food safety because rice is a staple crop for billions of people, and microplastic contamination in agricultural soil could affect crop yields and potentially introduce plastic particles into the food supply.

2024 Sarhad Journal of Agriculture 3 citations