Identification and quantification of microplastics using Nile Red staining

Shim, Won Joon; Song, Young Kyoung; Hong, Sang Hee; Jang, Mi

doi:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2016.10.049

Cited by 454 publications

(265 citation statements)

References 34 publications

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“…The issue of co-staining biogenic matter by n-hexane was reported by Shim et al as well. 28 Compared to the other staining methods, the results achieved by acetone do not match up with respect to the materials recovered. Differences in performance are not only related to material composition, but also highly to the shape of investigated particles, as reported previously by Shim et al 28 Fibres have proven to be especially difficult to stain with recovery rates being well below the mean of granules and fragments for all solvents.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 88%

“…For n-hexane green fluorescence had a similar intensity as red fluorescence, in accordance to findings reported before. 26,28 To allow an improved delimitation of stained particles, a majority filter (eight surrounding pixels) was applied. This filter replaces cell/pixel values based on the majority of their adjacent cells/pixels (cells must share an edge) within a raster.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…14,21 Besides spectroscopic techniques a quantitative differential staining approach based on the lipophilic dye Nile Red (9-diethylamino-5H-benzo[α]phenoxazine-5-one) has been applied. [23][24][25][26][27][28] The phenoxazone Nile Red was first used in the field of microbiology for detecting intracellular lipid droplets as well as for flow cytofluorometry 29,30 and has firstly been adapted for the purpose of microplastic analysis by Andrady. 27 Though this approach does not reveal information on the chemical structure of the particles, it allows a quick and inexpensive estimation of the microplastic load in a sample.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…30 In terms of microplastic analysis acetone and n-hexane were used so far. [26][27][28] In microbiology, use of nheptane, chloroform, xylene, and ethanol solvents in Nile Red staining were additionally reported. 29 Recently, Shim et al presented a comparison of eight possible solvents for Nile Red to improve the staining approach for the quantification of microplastics.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…29 Recently, Shim et al presented a comparison of eight possible solvents for Nile Red to improve the staining approach for the quantification of microplastics. 28 Using n-hexane, recovery rates of 98% for polyethylene (100-300µm) within a matrix of natural sand could be achieved.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

Nile Red Staining as a Subsidiary Method for Microplastic Quantifica-tion: A Comparison of Three Solvents and Factors Influencing Application Reliability

Tamminga¹

2017

JESES

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ABSTRACT:The quantification of microplastics is a challenging task to the scientific community, especially as the existing analytical methods limit sample numbers due to difficulties associated with high expenses and time consuming procedures. Quantifying microplastics by staining with Nile Red can be helpful in distinguishing these particles from other inorganic (e.g. sediment) or organic (e.g. plant material) matter. In the present study, the benefits of acetone, chloroform and nhexane as extraction solvents for Nile Red staining were investigated. For this study, various polymer types, namely highdensity and low-density polyethylene (HDPE, LDPE), polypropylene (PP), polystyrene (PS), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyamide (PA), polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and cellulose acetate (CA), several post-consumer products (freezing bag, bottle cap, plastic bottle, styrofoam, fishing line, food container, pipe and cigarette butt) as well as biogenic material (algae, hard plant material, soft plant material) were used as test materials. Results indicated chloroform to be the most suitable solvent achieving recovery rates of 83.3% for the group of HDPE, LDPE, PP and PVC being the most demanded polymer types in Europe. However, the proposed method does not reach the reliable quantification capabilities of Raman-spectroscopy or Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Nevertheless, it can aid the assessment of microplastic abundances. In conclusion, staining with Nile Red does not require expensive equipment and allows the quick evaluation of a large number of samples for the assessment of microplastics.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 88%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Nile Red Staining as a Subsidiary Method for Microplastic Quantifica-tion: A Comparison of Three Solvents and Factors Influencing Application Reliability

Tamminga¹

2017

JESES

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Microbial Degradation of Plastics

Antony,

Ghodke,

Thiyagarajan

et al. 2023

Sustainable Production Innovations

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Selection of Plastic‐Binding DNA Aptamers for Microplastics Detection

Zandieh,

Luo,

Zhao

et al. 2024

Angewandte Chemie

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Plastics are critical materials for modern technological applications, yet environmental contamination by microplastics has become a growing concern. In this study, DNA aptamers were isolated for two of the most abundant plastic materials: polyvinylchloride (PVC) and polystyrene (PS). These aptamers contain approximately 90% cytosine and thymine but only 10% purine content. Among them, the PVC‐1 aptamer binds to PVC with six‐fold higher capacity than a random sequenced DNA. Among the tested plastic materials, PVC and PS exhibited the highest specific binding capacity. Using fluorophore‐labeled PVC‐1 aptamer, PS/PVC microplastics as low as 1 mg were detected, and the aptamer was selective for microplastics over other environmentally relevant materials, such as silica. Molecular dynamics simulations indicated that the aptamer attempted to maximize contact with the plastic surface for adsorption. This plastic‐binding aptamer is expected to find applications in environmental monitoring and has fundamental implications for surface‐binding aptamers.

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Identification and quantification of microplastics using Nile Red staining

Cited by 454 publications

References 34 publications

Nile Red Staining as a Subsidiary Method for Microplastic Quantifica-tion: A Comparison of Three Solvents and Factors Influencing Application Reliability

Nile Red Staining as a Subsidiary Method for Microplastic Quantifica-tion: A Comparison of Three Solvents and Factors Influencing Application Reliability

Microbial Degradation of Plastics

Selection of Plastic‐Binding DNA Aptamers for Microplastics Detection

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