Scientists Explored the Effect of Microplastics in Mouse Brains

Could something similar happen in humans?

Microplastics in a vial
We know microplastics are being found in humans. But what are the health implications?
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Scientists conducting a study on mice found that introducing microplastics into mouse bodies resulted in microplastics ending up in their brains, which could have ominous implications for humans. There are few certainties in this world, but it’s looking increasingly likely that if there’s a location on Earth or a part of the body, microplastics are going to turn up there. This latest study sheds light on what the potential health repercussions could be.

A paper published this month in Science Advances details the study and the impact of microplastics in the bloodstream. The authors found that the presence of these minuscule plastic particles caused “reduced blood flow and neurological abnormalities in mice.” As Smriti Mallapaty noted in Nature, this is the first time scientists have “tracked microplastics moving through the bodies of mice in real time.”

The researchers introduced the microplastics into the mice through both a water mixture and direct injections. In observing the aftermath, they found the plastic bits were able to “disrupt tissue function indirectly through regulation of cell obstruction and interference with local blood circulation.” Furthermore, some cells containing microplastics “remained obstructed in the blood vessels even after an extended imaging duration.”

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As the researchers told Mallapaty, clusters of microplastics observed in the mice behaved similarly to blood clots. And it’s not just the brain that’s concerning: lead author Haipeng Huang of Peking University noted that similar clusters were found in the hearts and livers of the mice in the study, which may be documented in subsequent papers. While the authors note that there are many differences between the biological systems of humans and mice, it’s one more reason to be concerned about the proliferation of microplastics.

Correction — 11:04 a.m. EST, January 27, 2025: A previous version of this story misstated the origin of the microplastics. They were not found in the brains of mice by the researchers, they were added into the mice in order to study their effects.

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