Microplastic contamination refers to the presence and distribution of synthetic polymer particles typically <5 mm in environmental matrices, including marine, freshwater, terrestrial, atmospheric, and biological systems. As a research topic, it encompasses sources (primary and secondary microplastics), transport pathways (e.g., hydrodynamic and atmospheric dispersion), physicochemical properties (size, shape, polymer type, surface chemistry), and interactions with co-contaminants such as persistent organic pollutants and metals. Studies investigate bioavailability, trophic transfer, organismal and cellular responses, and potential human exposure via inhalation and ingestion, as well as methodological challenges in sampling, analytical detection, quantification, and risk assessment frameworks.
Plastic pollution has become a growing crisis for aquatic environments, with nanoplastics emerging as particularly hazardous due to their minuscule size and broad dispersal. Unlike larger plastic fragments, nanoplastics infiltrate ...
Bio & Medicine
Nov 4, 2024
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28
In a recent study, an international research team with significant involvement from MedUni Vienna has investigated how nanoplastic particles deposited in the body affect the effectiveness of antibiotics.
Bio & Medicine
Oct 30, 2024
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79
In a laboratory set-up simulating the human stomach and intestine, researchers at the University of Amsterdam have explored the fate of plastic nanoparticles during gastrointestinal digestion. In their paper published in ...
Bio & Medicine
Oct 28, 2024
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86
Water filters on the market today can remove some contaminants, but they're not designed to capture microplastics. In fact, some of them may actually add small plastics into drinking water during the filtration process. What's ...
Nanomaterials
Sep 16, 2024
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166
In a global first, University of Waterloo researchers have used 3D imaging technology to understand the fine details of microplastics, paving the way for more effective methods of plastic waste recycling.
Nanomaterials
Sep 5, 2024
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85
A new study published in the journal Nano Today reveals that nanoplastics, which are tiny plastic particles less than 1 micrometer in size, may cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB).
Bio & Medicine
Sep 4, 2024
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86
It is well known that more and more plastic waste is ending up in soil and bodies of water. Researchers are particularly concerned about tiny micro- and nano-sized particles. It remains unclear how and to what extent they ...
Nanomaterials
Aug 29, 2024
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162
Micro- and nanoplastics are in our food, water and the air we breathe. They are showing up in our bodies, from testicles to brain matter. Now, University of British Columbia researchers have developed a low-cost, portable ...
Bio & Medicine
Aug 27, 2024
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271
Researchers have demonstrated a way to speed up—and potentially scale up—the process for separating particles in fluids, which can be used for studying microplastics in drinking water or even analyzing cancer cells from blood.
Bio & Medicine
Aug 15, 2024
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122
James Cook University researchers have achieved a significant breakthrough that allows them to convert microplastics to a highly valuable material. The study is published in the journal Small Science.
Nanomaterials
Aug 13, 2024
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1290
