Microplastic digestion generates fragmented nanoplastics in soils and damages earthworm spermatogenesis and coelomocyte viability

Kwak, Jin Il; An, Youn‐Joo

doi:10.1016/j.jhazmat.2020.124034

Cited by 229 publications

(92 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…MP can cause skin lesions, increase mortality, and reduce reproductive rates in earthworms [30], thus reducing the transport of organic matter into deeper soil layers. Earthworms are a larger group of the soil biota with actual intake of MP particles and potentially fragmenting MP particles during digestion [31]. Upon excretion, these particles become available to other soil organisms of the food web, e.g., smaller decomposers, such as microarthropods [32].…”

Section: Affecting the Decomposition Processmentioning

confidence: 99%

Microplastic effects on carbon cycling processes in soils

2021

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Microplastics (MPs), plastic particles <5 mm, are found in environments, including terrestrial ecosystems, planetwide. Most research so far has focused on ecotoxicology, examining effects on performance of soil biota in controlled settings. As research pivots to a more ecosystem and global change perspective, questions about soil-borne biogeochemical cycles become important. MPs can affect the carbon cycle in numerous ways, for example, by being carbon themselves and by influencing soil microbial processes, plant growth, or litter decomposition. Great uncertainty surrounds nano-sized plastic particles, an expected by-product of further fragmentation of MPs. A major concerted effort is required to understand the pervasive effects of MPs on the functioning of soils and terrestrial ecosystems; importantly, such research needs to capture the immense diversity of these particles in terms of chemistry, aging, size, and shape.

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Section: Affecting the Decomposition Processmentioning

confidence: 99%

Microplastic effects on carbon cycling processes in soils

2021

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“…Additionally, it is believed that when microplastics are found in the environment, more undetected nanoplastics are around as well [ 29 ]. The current “microplastic exposure” is in fact the mixture of micro- and nanoplastic exposure [ 30 , 31 ]. An in vitro study has reported that a mixture of different sizes of nanoparticles affected their cellular uptake efficiency [ 32 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Underestimated health risks: polystyrene micro- and nanoplastics jointly induce intestinal barrier dysfunction by ROS-mediated epithelial cell apoptosis

et al. 2021

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Background Micro- and nanoplastic pollution has become a global environmental problem. Nanoplastics in the environment are still hard to detect because of analysis technology limitations. It is believed that when microplastics are found in the environment, more undetected nanoplastics are around. The current “microplastic exposure” is in fact the mixture of micro- and nanoplastic exposures. Therefore, the biological interaction between organisms among different sizes of micro- and nanoplastics should not be neglected. Results We measured the biodistribution of three polystyrene (PS) particles (50 nm PS, PS50; 500 nm PS, PS500; 5000 nm PS, PS5000) under single and co-exposure conditions in mice. We explored the underlying mechanisms by investigating the effects on three major components of the intestinal barrier (the mucus layer, tight junctions and the epithelial cells) in four intestine segments (duodenum, jejunum, ileum and colon) of mice. We found that the amounts of both PS500 and PS5000 increased when they were co-exposed with PS50 for 24 h in the mice. These increased amounts were due primarily to the increased permeability in the mouse intestines. We also confirmed there was a combined toxicity of PS50 and PS500 in the mouse intestines. This manifested as the mixture of PS50 and PS500 causing more severe dysfunction of the intestinal barrier than that caused by PS50 or PS500 alone. We found that the combined toxicity of PS micro- and nanoplastics on intestinal barrier dysfunction was caused primarily by reactive oxygen species (ROS)-mediated epithelial cell apoptosis in the mice. These findings were further confirmed by an oxidants or antioxidants pretreatment study. In addition, the combined toxicity of PS micro- and nanoplastics was also found in the mice after a 28-day repeated dose exposure. Conclusions There is a combined toxicity of PS50 and PS500 in the mouse intestines, which was caused primarily by ROS-mediated epithelial cell apoptosis in the mice. Considering that most recent studies on PS micro- and nanoplastics have been conducted using a single particle size, the health risks of exposure to PS micro- and nanoplastics on organisms may be underestimated.

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“…Woodlice do not have a certain particle-size ingestion limitation as they are shredders of litter in contrast to daphnids which are filter feeders. They could in fact fragment macroplastic to microplastic, which has not been yet shown for woodlice, but for other crustaceans [ 69 ] and earthworms [ 70 ]. Usually, a decrease of feeding upon exposure to MP is anticipated due to clogging of the digestive tract and damage of intestinal epithelium [ 39 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Long Term Exposure to Virgin and Recycled LDPE Microplastics Induced Minor Effects in the Freshwater and Terrestrial Crustaceans Daphnia magna and Porcellio scaber

et al. 2021

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The effects of microplastics (MP) are extensively studied, yet hazard data from long-term exposure studies are scarce. Moreover, for sustainable circular use in the future, knowledge on the biological impact of recycled plastics is essential. The aim of this study was to provide long-term toxicity data of virgin vs recycled (mechanical recycling) low density polyethylene (LDPE) for two commonly used ecotoxicity models, the freshwater crustacean Daphnia magna and the terrestrial crustacean Porcellio scaber. LDPE MP was tested as fragments of 39.8 ± 8.82 µm (virgin) and 205 ± 144 µm (recycled) at chronic exposure levels of 1–100 mg LDPE/L (D. magna) and 0.2–15 g LDPE/kg soil (P. scaber). Mortality, reproduction, body length, total lipid content, feeding and immune response were evaluated. With the exception of very low inconsistent offspring mortality at 10 mg/L and 100 mg/L of recycled LDPE, no MP exposure-related adverse effects were recorded for D. magna. For P. scaber, increased feeding on non-contaminated leaves was observed for virgin LDPE at 5 g/kg and 15 g/kg. In addition, both LDPE induced a slight immune response at 5 g/kg and 15 g/kg with more parameters altered for virgin LDPE. Our results indicated different sublethal responses upon exposure to recycled compared to virgin LDPE MP.

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Microplastic digestion generates fragmented nanoplastics in soils and damages earthworm spermatogenesis and coelomocyte viability

Cited by 229 publications

References 40 publications

Microplastic effects on carbon cycling processes in soils

Microplastic effects on carbon cycling processes in soils

Underestimated health risks: polystyrene micro- and nanoplastics jointly induce intestinal barrier dysfunction by ROS-mediated epithelial cell apoptosis

Long Term Exposure to Virgin and Recycled LDPE Microplastics Induced Minor Effects in the Freshwater and Terrestrial Crustaceans Daphnia magna and Porcellio scaber

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