Microplastics may generate harmful chemicals in water

Summarised from Ars Technica's report · Updated 16 Oct, 03:27 · Archive

Microplastics in water may not be chemically inert and could generate harmful chemicals, according to a new study.

Plastics are widely used because they are chemically inert, but they break down into microplastics that turn up in drinking water, human blood, arteries and brains. Researchers at Columbia University investigated whether these microplastics remain chemically inert or generate harmful substances.

The team found that microplastics likely generate reactive oxygen species, a family of harmful, oxygen-containing molecules. Wei Min, a chemist leading the research, said these molecules damage proteins, lipids and DNA by breaking strands into segments, mutating DNA and misfolding proteins. In tests, polystyrene powder stirred into water containing a yellow dye caused the solution to fade almost to colourless over ten days, losing nearly 90 per cent of the dye. The same dye remained intact in ethanol and other solvents, suggesting the reaction required water.

Many animal studies have linked microplastic toxicity to oxidative stress, which is caused by these harmful molecules. However, whether microplastics can directly cause human disease remains an open question, according to researchers.

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• Microplastics in water aren’t inert and make damaging chemicals on their ownIts effect on people remains an ongoing question.Ars Technica · 15 Oct, 19:39

In this story: Columbia University · Wei Min · Nature

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