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61,005 resultsShowing papers similar to Chronic Nanoplastic Exposure as a Novel Risk Amplifier for MASLD Progression
ClearMicroplastics in metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease: An emerging threat to liver health
This review examined emerging evidence linking microplastic exposure to the development and progression of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD, formerly NAFLD). The authors found that microplastics detected in liver tissue can exacerbate hepatic inflammation, lipid accumulation, and oxidative stress through multiple mechanisms, adding a novel environmental risk factor to MASLD pathogenesis.
Chronic Nanoplastic Exposure Promotes the Development and Progression of Metabolic Dysfunction‐Associated Steatotic Liver Disease
This study found that chronic exposure to nanoplastics promotes the development and worsening of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (formerly known as fatty liver disease). Nanoplastics appear to increase vulnerability to liver disease progression. The finding is concerning because fatty liver disease is already widespread, and everyday nanoplastic exposure through food and water could be making it worse.
Nanoplastics and MASLD : Unveiling Interorgan Crosstalk and Environmental Modulators
This brief editorial discusses the emerging connection between nanoplastic exposure and metabolic-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), a condition involving fat buildup in the liver. It highlights how nanoplastics may act as environmental triggers that affect the liver through interactions with the gut and other organs. As MASLD rates rise globally, understanding whether plastic pollution contributes to liver disease is an important emerging area of research.
Response to Letter to the Editor: “Chronic Nanoplastic Exposure as a Novel Risk Amplifier for MASLD Progression”
This paper is a response to a letter to the editor concerning the hypothesis that chronic nanoplastic exposure may act as a novel risk amplifier for metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) progression, addressing methodological and interpretive points raised by correspondents.
Microplastics and nanoplastics: Emerging drivers of hepatic pathogenesis and metabolic dysfunction
This review examines emerging evidence linking micro- and nanoplastic exposure to liver disease, including metabolic dysfunction-associated liver disease, cirrhosis, and liver cancer. Researchers found that these particles may contribute to liver damage through oxidative stress, inflammation, and disruption of metabolic pathways. The study highlights the need for further research into how environmental plastic contamination may be influencing the rising rates of liver disease worldwide.
The nexus of environmental endocrine-disrupting chemical exposure and metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease: An emerging public health challenge
This review examines evidence that chronic low-dose exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals, including micro- and nanoplastics, may be an underappreciated factor driving the global rise of metabolic liver disease. Researchers found that these pollutants can promote liver fat accumulation, inflammation, and scarring by disrupting hormone signaling, gut health, and mitochondrial function. The study suggests that environmental chemical exposures should be considered alongside diet and lifestyle when assessing liver disease risk.
Overview of the hazardous impacts of metabolism-disrupting chemicals on the progression of fatty liver diseases.
This review examined how metabolism-disrupting chemicals (MDCs)—including bisphenol A and phthalates from plastics—promote the development and progression of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD, formerly NAFLD). MDC exposure was found to impair liver lipid homeostasis and contribute to the global rise in fatty liver disease.
Links between fecal microplastics and parameters related to metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) in humans: An exploratory study
In this exploratory human study, researchers found links between microplastics in people's stool samples and markers of metabolic liver disease (MASLD). Participants with liver disease had different types and amounts of fecal microplastics compared to healthy individuals, along with changes in gut bacteria and liver gene expression. While the study is small, it provides early evidence that microplastic exposure in humans may be connected to liver health problems.
Are Ingested or Inhaled Microplastics Involved in Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease?
This review explored the potential connection between microplastic exposure through ingestion and inhalation and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, which has become a leading cause of chronic liver injury. The study discusses how dietary and environmental microplastic exposure could potentially influence liver health through mechanisms including inflammation and endocrine disruption, though further research is needed to establish definitive links.
Adipose tissue as target of environmental toxicants: focus on mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative inflammation in metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease
This review examines how environmental toxicants, including micro and nanoplastics, target fat tissue and contribute to metabolic diseases like obesity, diabetes, and fatty liver disease. These pollutants disrupt mitochondria (the energy-producing parts of cells) and trigger a cycle of oxidative stress and inflammation that damages both fat tissue and the liver. The findings suggest that microplastic exposure could be one of several environmental factors contributing to the rising rates of metabolic disease worldwide.
Polystyrene Nanoplastics Exacerbate HFD-induced MASLD by Reducing Cathepsin Activity and Triggering Large Vacuole Formation via Impaired Lysosomal Acidification
Researchers found that polystyrene nanoplastics, when combined with a high-fat diet in mice, significantly worsened fatty liver disease symptoms compared to either factor alone. The nanoplastics impaired the function of lysosomes, the cell's recycling centers, by preventing proper acidification and reducing enzyme activity. The study suggests that nanoplastic exposure could amplify diet-related liver problems by interfering with how cells process and break down fats.
Polystyrene nanoplastics potentiate the development of hepatic fibrosis in high fat diet fed mice
Researchers found that polystyrene nanoplastics worsened liver damage in mice fed a high-fat diet by increasing oxidative stress, inflammation, and the infiltration of immune cells in liver tissue. The nanoplastic exposure accelerated the progression from fatty liver to hepatic fibrosis in the diet-induced model. The study suggests that nanoplastic exposure may compound the health risks associated with metabolic conditions affecting the liver.
Impact of microplastics and nanoplastics on liver health: Current understanding and future research directions
This review summarizes what scientists know about how micro- and nanoplastics affect the liver, which is one of the first organs exposed because it processes everything absorbed from the gut. The particles trigger oxidative stress, disrupt energy metabolism, cause cell death, and promote inflammation, and may contribute to conditions like fatty liver disease and liver fibrosis. The paper also highlights how plastics can disturb the gut microbiome, which communicates with the liver through the gut-liver axis and may amplify liver damage.
Examining the Pathogenesis of MAFLD and the Medicinal Properties of Natural Products from a Metabolic Perspective
This review examines the causes and potential treatments for metabolic-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD), which affects about two-fifths of the global population. While focused on natural product remedies rather than microplastics, the metabolic pathways discussed, including lipid metabolism disruption and oxidative stress, are the same mechanisms through which microplastics have been shown to damage liver cells. Understanding these pathways helps explain how microplastic exposure could contribute to liver disease.
Hepatotoxic Mechanisms of Micro- and Nanoplastics in Animal Models: A Scoping Review with Human Health Implications
This scoping review examines hepatotoxic mechanisms of micro- and nanoplastics in animal models, identifying oxidative stress, inflammation, lipid peroxidation, and epigenetic alterations as the primary pathways through which plastic particles damage liver tissue.
Non-parenchymal cells: key targets for modulating chronic liver diseases
This review examines how specialized non-parenchymal cells in the liver drive chronic liver diseases like fatty liver disease, fibrosis, and cirrhosis through inflammation and scarring. While not directly about microplastics, these are the same cell types and disease pathways that microplastics and nanoplastics have been shown to activate when they accumulate in liver tissue. Understanding these mechanisms helps explain how environmental pollutants like microplastics could contribute to the growing burden of chronic liver disease.
Exposure to submicroplastics promotes the progression of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in ApoE-deficient mice
Researchers found that exposing mice to submicron-sized polystyrene plastics in their drinking water for 12 weeks accelerated the progression of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. The tiny plastic particles accumulated in the liver, worsened fat buildup, increased inflammation, and disrupted cholesterol metabolism. This study suggests that people who already have risk factors for liver disease may be especially vulnerable to health effects from microplastic exposure.
Nanoplastic propels diet-induced NAFL to NASH via ER-mitochondrial tether-controlled redox switch
Researchers investigated how nanoplastic exposure may accelerate the progression of diet-induced fatty liver conditions in animal models. The study found that nanoplastics disrupted the connections between the endoplasmic reticulum and mitochondria, triggering oxidative stress responses that worsened liver inflammation and damage.
The hepatotoxicity assessment of micro/nanoplastics: A preliminary study to apply the adverse outcome pathways
Researchers reviewed the literature on how micro- and nanoplastics cause liver damage and organized the findings into an Adverse Outcome Pathway framework. They found that plastic particles can trigger oxidative stress, inflammation, and metabolic disruption in the liver, potentially leading to dysfunction. The study provides a structured way to understand the chain of events from plastic particle exposure to liver harm, highlighting potential health risks for humans.
Exposure to microplastics and liver oncogenesis: A comprehensive review on molecular mechanisms and pathogenic pathways
Researchers reviewed mechanisms by which microplastic exposure may promote liver cancer, identifying oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, inflammatory signaling, and epigenetic disruption as key pathways, while noting that microplastics can also carry heavy metals and organic pollutants that synergistically amplify hepatotoxic and carcinogenic risk.
Nanoplastics Toxicity Specific to Liver in Inducing Metabolic Dysfunction—A Comprehensive Review
This review examines how nanoplastics, particles smaller than 100 nanometers, accumulate in and damage the liver. Researchers found that nanoplastics enter the body through the respiratory and digestive systems, reach the liver via the bloodstream, and can disrupt the gut-liver axis and gut microbiome. The evidence suggests that liver damage from nanoplastics may trigger cascading effects on other organs, highlighting the need for further research on these less visible pollutants.
Chronic PET‐Microplastic Exposure: Disruption of Gut–Liver Homeostasis and Risk of Hepatic Steatosis
Researchers exposed mice to PET microplastics ground from plastic bottles over 29 weeks and found that the particles caused obesity, liver enlargement, fatty liver disease, and early-stage scarring of liver tissue. The microplastics also disrupted gut bacteria and bile acid metabolism, pointing to damage along the gut-liver connection. The findings raise concerns about the long-term health effects of chronic exposure to the type of microplastics commonly found in food and beverages.
Chronic environmental exposure to polystyrene microplastics increases the risk of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease
A mouse study found that long-term exposure to polystyrene microplastics increased the risk of developing non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. The microplastics accumulated in the liver and disrupted fat metabolism, causing inflammation and liver damage, which is concerning because most previous studies only looked at short-term exposure effects.
Nanoplastics and Microplastics May Be Damaging Our Livers
This systematic review summarizes research on how micro- and nanoplastics may damage the liver. Since the liver is the body's main detoxification organ, it plays a key role in processing plastic particles that enter the body through food, water, and air, and the evidence suggests these particles can cause inflammation, oxidative stress, and other liver problems.