98%
921
2 minutes
20
Micro and nanoplastics (MNPs) pose significant environmental concerns due to their potential implications for ecosystems and human health. While previous research has primarily focused on the environmental impacts (aquatic ecosystem, soil health) of MNPs, this review investigates their interactions with agricultural stored products, specifically their effects on stored product pests and grain quality. MNPs can infiltrate grains through various pathways, including atmospheric deposition, plastic residues from cultivation, and pest activity. These contaminants may influence pest feeding and behavioral patterns, reproductive cycles, and development. Simultaneously, MNPs have the potential to alter grain properties, including mineral content, protein composition, and starch synthesis, potentially compromising nutritional quality. Understanding these interactions is critical for developing strategies to mitigate the dual threats of MNP pollution and pest infestations to stored agricultural products.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
---|---|
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2025.178534 | DOI Listing |
Environ Toxicol Chem
September 2025
Statistical Ecotoxicology, University of Bayreuth, Bayreuth, Germany.
Several micro- and nanoplastic particle (MNP) traits, like polymer type, size, and shape, have been shown to influence MNP toxicity. However, the direction and strength of these moderating effects are often unclear, and generalizations from single studies are challenging to establish. Meta-analyses increase generalizability and derive more accurate and precise effect size estimates by combining measurements from published studies.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFACS Omega
September 2025
Mads Clausen Institute, NanoSYD, University of Southern Denmark (SDU), Alsion 2, 6400 Sønderborg, Denmark.
Detection of micro- and nanoplastic particles at extremely low concentrations in complex matrices is a critical goal in environmental science and regulatory frameworks. Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) offers unique advantages for detecting molecular species in such mixtures, relying solely on their characteristic fingerprints. However, its application for plastic particles has been constrained due to weak analyte-substrate interactions.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSoft Matter
September 2025
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY 14260, USA.
Modeling membrane interactions with arbitrarily shaped colloidal particles, such as environmental micro- and nanoplastics, at the cell scale remains particularly challenging, owing to the complexity of particle geometries and the need to resolve fully coupled translational and rotational dynamics. Here, we present a force-based computational framework capable of capturing dynamic interactions between deformable lipid vesicles and rigid particles of irregular shapes. Both vesicle and particle surfaces are represented using triangulated meshes, and Langevin dynamics resolves membrane deformation alongside rigid-body particle motion.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnviron Pollut
September 2025
Department of Biomedicine and Experimental Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, Medical University of Lodz, Narutowicza 60, 90-136 Lodz, Poland; Biomaterials Research Laboratory, Faculty of Medicine, Medical University of Lodz, Narutowicza 60, 90-136 Lodz, Poland. Electronic address:
Microplastics are defined as plastic particles no larger than 5 mm, while nanoplastics are even smaller particles with dimensions less than 1000 nm. With mounting evidence of their widespread presence in human tissues and diverse ecosystems, these micro- and nanoplastics (MNPs) have collectively emerged as ubiquitous environmental contaminants. They can enter the human body through ingestion, inhalation, or dermal absorption.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnviron Int
August 2025
Nanjing Stomatological Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, Institute of Stomatology, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China. Electronic address:
The oral cavity, the gateway to the digestive system, represents a critical entrance for micro- and nanoplastics (MNPs) to enter the human body. Few studies have assessed the long-term accumulation of MNPs in the oral cavity and their potential harm to resident cells. This study investigated the presence of MNPs in human dental calculus and evaluated the cytotoxic and inflammatory effects of polyethylene (PE) on human gingival fibroblasts (HGFs).
View Article and Find Full Text PDF