2. Academic Validation
  3. Size-dependent toxicity of polystyrene microplastics on the gastrointestinal tract: Oxidative stress related-DNA damage and potential carcinogenicity

Size-dependent toxicity of polystyrene microplastics on the gastrointestinal tract: Oxidative stress related-DNA damage and potential carcinogenicity

  • Sci Total Environ. 2023 Dec 20:169514. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.169514.
Ruiyang Ding 1,  Yueyue Chen 1,  Xuemin Shi 1,  Yang Li 1,  Yang Yu 1,  Zhiwei Sun 2,  Junchao Duan 3
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 Department of Toxicology and Sanitary Chemistry, School of Public Health, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069, PR China; Beijing Key Laboratory of Environmental Toxicology, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069, PR China.
  • 2 Department of Toxicology and Sanitary Chemistry, School of Public Health, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069, PR China; Beijing Key Laboratory of Environmental Toxicology, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069, PR China. Electronic address: zwsun@ccmu.edu.cn.
  • 3 Department of Toxicology and Sanitary Chemistry, School of Public Health, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069, PR China; Beijing Key Laboratory of Environmental Toxicology, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069, PR China. Electronic address: jcduan@ccmu.edu.cn.
PMID: 38135073 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.169514
Abstract

Microplastics (MPs) and nanoplastics (NPs) have been generally regarded as emerging pollutants and received worldwide attention in recent years. Water and food consumption are the primary pathways for human exposure to MPs/NPs, thus gastrointestinal tracts may be susceptible to their toxicity. Although the recent report has indicated the presence of MPs/NPs in multiple human organs, little is known about their gastric effects. Therefore, this study focused on the adverse effects of polystyrene microplastics (PS-MPs) on gastric epithelium in vivo and in vitro. Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) revealed the distribution of PS-MPs was associated with their particle sizes, and predominantly concentrated in gastric tissues. Gastric barrier injury and mitochondrial damage were observed in rats after exposure to PS-MPs. Compared with the larger ones, polystyrene nanoplastics (PS-NPs) more significantly reduced the activity of antioxidant Enzymes while enhancing the level of MDA, 8-OhdG and γ-H2AX. Meanwhile, PS-MPs caused upregulation of β-catenin/YAP through redox-dependent regulation of nucleoredoxin (NXN) and dishevelled (Dvl). These findings supported the size-dependent effects of PS-MPs on oxidative stress and DNA damage. Moreover, the redox-dependent activation of the β-catenin/YAP cascade suggested a novel toxic mechanism for PS-MPs and implied the potential carcinogenic effects.

Keywords

Carcinogenicity; DNA damage; Microplastics; Nanoplastics; Oxidative stress.

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