A study on microplastics interference in mammalian cells metabolism via Infrared Microimaging and Nanospectroscopy

The aim is to develop an experimental approach combining live cell Syncrotron Radiation (SR) Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) imaging via a Focal plane array (FPA) detector and FTIR nanospectroscopy on fixed cells to study the molecular interactions of micro/nanoplastics within mammalian cells.

Microplastic pollution has attracted attention in both the scientific community and general public. Defined as plastic particles and fibres <5 mm, these low-density materials are easily dispersed throughout the environment where they persist. As plastic remains widely used, the release of micro- and potentially nanoplastic (<100 nm) particles to the environment will continue as they degrade and shed. Whilst there is evidence for population exposure to microplastics via food, drinking water, dust and air, fundamentals about their toxicity remain unknown. (Vethaak 2021) Given the variety in which they occur, understanding how acute toxicity varies with composition (e.g., low/high density plastic materials), and size (micro/nano) are pertinent to predicting risk, informed by principals in particle toxicology.(Riediker 2019) Moreover, understanding whether microplastics biopersist inside cells and how these variables (polymer type, size) affect this is key to predicting the potential chronicity of their effects following exposure.