Polystyrene nanoplastics affect seed germination, cell biology and physiology of rice seedlings in-short term treatments: Evidence of their internalization and translocation

Early evidence of the impacts of microplastic and nanoplastic pollution on the growth and physiology of the seagrass Cymodocea nodosa

“…Membrane lipid peroxidation can occur with increased content of malondialdehyde, estimated measuring TBARS concentration, considered for this reason a useful parameter, indirect indicator of membrane damage. Under nanoplastic treatments both increase and decrease in oxidative stress parameters have been recorded depending on plant species and/or organ and plastic characteristics (Giorgetti et al, 2020;Li et al, 2020b;Spanò et al, 2022). In our study, both hydrogen peroxide (F2,9= 440,8, p<0.001) and TBARS (F2,9= 219.3, p<0.001) contents were significantly higher in C. nodosa shoots treated by NPs than in controls and MPs-treated plants (Fig.…”

“…Therefore, MP/NPs could interact with seagrasses both at shoot level via the aquatic medium and at root level via the sediment (Gerstenbacher et al, 2022). Experimental evidence indicates that in terrestrial and freshwater angiosperms, which share some anatomical traits with seagrasses, small MPs (200 nm) and NPs can be adsorbed by roots, accumulate in plant tissues and eventually be translocated to shoots, leading to multiple toxic effects, such as increased oxidative stress, DNA damage, gene expression alterations, reduction of photosynthesis and inhibition of seed germination (Bosker et al, 2019;Giorgetti et al, 2020;Sun et al, 2020;Mateos-Cárdenas et al, 2021;Lian et al, 2022;Spanò et al, 2022). Seagrass meadows provide a wide range of fundamental ecosystem services, like nutrient cycling regulation, nursery habitat provisioning, and coastal protection (Barbier et al, 2011), but they are under threat globally due to anthropogenic impacts and climate-change-related stressors (Orth et al, 2006;He and Silliman, 2019).…”

Microplastic/nanoplastic toxicity in plants: an imminent concern

“…Several studies have shown that MPs/NPs harm the seed germination rate and speed. A study with different concentrations of PS-based NPs was recently found to impair rice germination and seedling growth (Spanò et al, 2022 ). The result shows that PS-based NPs can be easily absorbed and migrate to the aboveground parts of rice seedlings during the early stages of plant development.…”

Ecological and human health risks of atmospheric microplastics (MPs): a review

“…Foliar exposure to MPs can have a considerable impact on growth: lowering crop dry weight, plant height, and leaf area 140 . MPs deposited from the atmosphere into the soil are absorbed by plant roots and transferred to shoots 141 . MPs present in soil can alter the rooting ability of plants.…”

“…140 MPs deposited from the atmosphere into the soil are absorbed by plant roots and transferred to shoots. 141 MPs present in the soil can alter the rooting ability of plants. PES and PS in soil resulted in a significant increase in root biomass.…”