ISSN: 2639-216X
Authors: Del Piano F*, Monnolo A*
The increasing use of plastic materials in last decades, along with difficulties in disposal management and scarce degradability, has made these contaminants ubiquitous and persistent in the environment. Their impact on aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems constitutes an emerging threat for environmental, human, and animal health. Plastics are classified in micro- and nanoplastics. Living organisms accumulate along the trophic chains the micro- and nanoplastics usually introduced through ingestion and, in some cases (for instance, mammals), also through inhalatory and dermal routes. The exposure to micro- and nanoplastics may cause adverse effects in living beings involving different biological structures and toxicity pathways. Most of the available literature on the subject reports the effects of micro- and nanoplastics on aquatic organisms while the health risk for terrestrial ones, especially for mammals, are still overlooked. Micro- and nanoplastics may impair the redox balance by increasing the production of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species and impairing antioxidant defences, leading to oxidative stress and, thus, to inflammation and several structural and functional damages. The surface characteristics of micro- and nanoplastics make them capable to adsorb and bind other xenobiotics, such as chemical additives, heavy metals, persistent organic pollutants and drugs, which may worsen the micro- and nanoplastics-induced toxic effect. We review recent evidence on the effect of the combined exposure to micro- and nanoplastics and other chemical contaminants on oxidative stress-mediated toxicity in aquatic and terrestrial species. It emerges the relevance of investigating the microand nanoplastics toxicity under experimental conditions that mirror environmental ones.
Keywords: Microplastics; Nanoplastics; Oxidative Stress; Vectors; Chemical Xenobiotics
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