Microplastic ingestion in aquatic and soil biota: A comprehensive review of laboratory studies on edible size and intake pattern.
Mar Pollut Bull
; 200: 116056, 2024 Mar.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38266480
ABSTRACT
Microplastic contamination is ubiquitous and can be transferred through the food chain to humans. However, studies on microplastic size have mainly focused on large animals with a body length >20 mm. To address this gap, we conducted a comprehensive review of 169 laboratory studies to determine the edible size of microplastics for macrofauna and flora in aquatic and soil biota. Our findings indicate that microplastics with a size of <300 µm and 1 µm, respectively, are edible for these organisms, which are positioned at the base of the food chain. We also analyzed intake and depuration patterns and identified factors affecting microplastic ingestion. Our study fills an important knowledge gap by identifying the range of microplastic sizes that can enter the food chain and be transferred to humans. The study findings have strong implications for the ecological risk assessment of microplastics and suggest a starting point for mitigating this threat.
Key words
Full text:
1
Collection:
01-internacional
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Water Pollutants, Chemical
/
Microplastics
Type of study:
Prognostic_studies
/
Risk_factors_studies
Limits:
Animals
/
Humans
Language:
En
Journal:
Mar Pollut Bull
Year:
2024
Document type:
Article
Country of publication: