A metabolomics perspective on the effect of environmental micro and nanoplastics on living organisms: A review

Leilei Zhang, Pascual García-Pérez, Barbara Muñoz-Palazon, Alejandro Gonzalez-Martinez, Luigi Lucini, Alejandro Rodriguez-Sanchez

Research output: Contribution to journalArticle

Abstract

The increasing trend regarding the use of plastics has arisen an exponential concern on the fate of their derived products to the environment. Among these derivatives, microplastics and nanoplastics (MNPs) have been featured for their associated environmental impact due to their low molecular size and high surface area, which has prompted their ubiquitous transference among all environmental interfaces. Due to the heterogenous chemical composition of MNPs, the study of these particles has focused a high number of studies, as a result of the myriad of associated physicochemical properties that contribute to the co-transference of a wide range of contaminants, thus becoming a major challenge for the scientific community. In this sense, both primary and secondary MNPs are well-known to be adscribed to industrial and urbanized areas, from which they are massively released to the environment through a multiscale level, involving the atmosphere, hydrosphere, and lithosphere. Consequently, much research has been conducted on the understanding of the interconnection between those interfaces, that motivate the spread of these contaminants to biological systems, being mostly represented by the biosphere, especially phytosphere and, finally, the anthroposphere. These findings have highlighted the potential hazardous risk for human health through different mechanisms from the environment, requiring a much deeper approach to define the real risk of MNPs exposure. As a result, there is a gap of knowledge regarding the environmental impact of MNPs from a high-throughput perspective. In this review, a metabolomics-based overview on the impact of MNPs to all environmental interfaces was proposed, considering this technology a highly valuable tool to decipher the real impact of MNPs on biological systems, thus opening a novel perspective on the study of these contaminants.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)N/A-N/A
JournalScience of the Total Environment
Volume932
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2024

Keywords

  • Ecological interfaces
  • Environmental pollution
  • Metabolome
  • Microplastics
  • Nanoplastics

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'A metabolomics perspective on the effect of environmental micro and nanoplastics on living organisms: A review'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this