Papers

20 results
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Article Tier 2

Micro and nanoplastics pollution: Sources, distribution, uptake in plants, toxicological effects, and innovative remediation strategies for environmental sustainability

This review examines how microplastics and nanoplastics enter plants through roots, disrupt growth and photosynthesis, and cause oxidative stress that reduces crop yields. Because these plastic particles can move through plant tissues and into edible parts, they represent a potential pathway for microplastics to enter the human food supply.

2024 Plant Physiology and Biochemistry 62 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic stress in plants: effects on plant growth and their remediations

This review examines how microplastic contamination in soil affects plant growth through multiple pathways, including blocking water and nutrient absorption through roots, triggering harmful levels of reactive oxygen species, and disrupting hormone regulation. The effects vary depending on the type, size, and amount of microplastic present. Since plants are the foundation of our food supply, understanding how microplastics impair crop health is directly relevant to food safety and human nutrition.

2023 Frontiers in Plant Science 188 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

Microplastic pollution: Phytotoxicity, environmental risks, and phytoremediation strategies

This review examines how microplastics harm plants through oxidative stress, interference with photosynthesis, and DNA damage, and explores whether plants could be used to clean up microplastic pollution. Plants can absorb tiny microplastics through their roots and leaves, and the plastics accumulate along the food chain, making health risk assessment difficult. The authors discuss phytoremediation strategies where specific plants could help remove microplastics from contaminated soil.

2023 Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology 42 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics and plant health: A comprehensive analysis of entry pathways, physiological impacts, and remediation strategies

This comprehensive review examines how microplastics enter plant systems, the physiological and biochemical impacts on plant health, and the implications for crop productivity and food safety, synthesizing evidence that MPs can reduce germination, growth, and nutritional quality in agricultural plants.

2025 International Journal of Advanced Biochemistry Research
Article Tier 2

A critical review of microplastics in the soil-plant system: Distribution, uptake, phytotoxicity and prevention

This review brings together data from over 1,000 sampling sites worldwide to map microplastic contamination in soil and its effects on plants. Microplastics can delay seed germination, stunt plant growth, inhibit photosynthesis, and cause genetic damage to crops. The findings raise concerns about food safety because microplastics in agricultural soil could both reduce crop yields and introduce contaminants into the food chain.

2021 Journal of Hazardous Materials 281 citations
Article Tier 2

Research Progress on the Mechanisms of Terrestrial Plant Uptake, Transport, and Growth Inhibition Responses to Micro (nano) Plastics

This review synthesizes current research on how terrestrial plants take up micro- and nanoplastics from contaminated soil, finding that particles can enter through roots, accumulate in plant tissues, block root function, and trigger oxidative damage that stunts growth. These pathways mean that food crops grown in microplastic-contaminated soils could expose humans to plastic particles through the diet, in addition to the harm caused to agricultural productivity.

2024 Preprints.org 3 citations
Review Tier 2

Unveiling the mechanism of micro-and-nano plastic phytotoxicity on terrestrial plants: A comprehensive review of omics approaches.

This comprehensive review examined how micro-and-nano plastics (MNPs) in terrestrial soils damage plant health by inhibiting water and nutrient uptake, reducing seed germination, impairing photosynthesis, and inducing oxidative stress. The review identified key knowledge gaps in understanding MNP phytotoxicity mechanisms and their implications for food security.

2025 Environment international
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
Article Tier 2

Impacts of microplastics on terrestrial plants: A critical review

This review examines how microplastics affect land-based plants, finding that they can alter soil structure, disrupt beneficial soil microbes, and reduce plant growth. Microplastics also carry toxic chemicals like plasticizers and heavy metals that can be taken up by plant roots and enter the food chain. The findings raise concerns about human health since contaminated crops could be a hidden source of microplastic and chemical exposure in our diets.

2024 Land Degradation and Development 23 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics and nanoplastics in the soil-plant nexus: Sources, uptake, and toxicity

This review examines how microplastics and nanoplastics accumulate in agricultural soils from plastic products and affect the soil-plant system. Researchers found that nanoplastics can be taken up by plant roots, cause oxidative stress, and negatively affect crop growth. The findings raise concerns about food safety since these particles may carry co-contaminants into the food chain.

2023 Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology 51 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

Effects of nano- & microplastics on terrestrial plants are ubiquitous and widespread: a systematic review

This systematic review finds that nano- and microplastics have widespread negative effects on plants, including reduced germination, stunted growth, and biochemical stress responses. Since plants form the base of our food supply, these findings suggest that microplastic contamination in agricultural soils could affect crop health and potentially the quality of food we eat.

2023 CNR ExploRA
Article Tier 2

Microplastic/nanoplastic toxicity in plants: an imminent concern

This review examines the growing body of research on how microplastics and nanoplastics affect terrestrial plants, from root uptake to changes in growth and gene expression. Researchers found that these particles can alter plant physiology and biochemistry at varying degrees depending on particle size and concentration. The study calls for more research on how plastic contamination in soil may ultimately affect food crop quality and human health through the food chain.

2022 Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 182 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

Nanoplastics and Microplastics in Agricultural Systems: Effects on Plants and Implications for Human Consumption

This review summarizes existing research on how nanoplastics and microplastics enter agricultural soil through irrigation, plastic mulch, and sewage sludge, then accumulate in crops that people eat. The particles can also carry other harmful substances like pesticides and heavy metals into plants, raising concerns about long-term health effects from chronic dietary exposure.

2025 Microplastics 12 citations
Article Tier 2

Absorption of microplastics by terrestrial plants and their ecological risk

This review describes how microplastics enter terrestrial plants through both root systems in soil and leaf surfaces from airborne particles, and how they accumulate within plant tissues. Researchers discuss the direct physical damage from the plastic particles as well as the toxicity of chemical additives like plasticizers and UV stabilizers. The findings raise concerns about food safety, since microplastics absorbed by crop plants could enter human diets through the food chain.

2025 New Contaminants 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Impacts of Plastics on Plant Development: Recent Advances and Future Research Directions

This review summarizes how microplastics and nanoplastics affect plant growth, from blocking seed germination and root development to causing oxidative stress and DNA damage in plant cells. Nanoplastics are small enough to be absorbed by roots and transported to stems, leaves, and even fruits. These findings are concerning for human health because they show that microplastics can enter the food supply through crops, creating a direct pathway for human exposure through plant-based foods.

2023 Plants 44 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

A Systematic Review on Emission, Accumulation, Mechanism, and Toxicity Perspective of Micro‐Nanoplastics in the Soil–Plant Nexus

This systematic review examines how micro- and nanoplastics enter soil, accumulate in plants, and move through the soil-plant system. The research shows that microplastics alter soil properties, affect plant growth, and can be taken up by crop roots and transported to edible plant parts. This is a direct concern for human health because it means microplastics in agricultural soil may end up in the fruits and vegetables people consume.

2025 Land Degradation and Development
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

Micro and nanoplastics as emerging stressors influencing plant metabolism and nutrient dynamics

This review of existing research shows that tiny plastic particles in farm soil can get inside plants and change how they grow and absorb nutrients. When plants take up these microplastics, it could affect the nutritional quality of the fruits and vegetables we eat, potentially impacting our food safety. However, scientists still need more long-term studies to fully understand how serious this threat is to our food supply and health.

2026 International Journal of Phytoremediation