New research suggests that microplastics in our oceans might be hundreds of thousands of times more abundant than current detection methods are reporting.
Microplastic particles (MPs) are tiny fragments of plastic, less than 5mm. They result from both commercial production and the breakdown of larger plastics. One of the biggest sources is synthetic fabrics.
Chemicals within microplastics have now made their way into oceans and waterways, and even drinking water, causing concern to scientists and public health officials. The increase of microplastics in aquatic systems is dangerous to both marine life and creatures, including humans, through the consumption of seafood.
Recent reports have also that microplastics themselves are common in every part of the human body, including the testicles.
A new study, published in the Marine Pollution Bulletin, shows that the problem is likely to be even greater than we previously thought.
Using Raman microspectroscopy to determine the chemical makeup of samples, the scientists analysed ocean waters from the Caribbean to the Arctic. Their results show that the most abundant and tiny microplastics aren’t being detected by current methods.
Normally, microplastics in ocean waters are measured using net tow surveys. Tightly meshed “plankton nets” sieve microplastics out of the water, which can then be analysed.
These plankton nets detect particles between 300–500 micrometres in size, where a micrometre is one millionth of a metre. The Raman microspectroscopy technique is able to reveal microplastics much smaller than just 15 micrometres.
“Our results highlight the numerical primacy of small microplastic particles in seawater, and we found that the most abundant microplastics were between 1 and 14 micrometres,” says first author Medina Faull, from Stony Brook University in New York. “60% were under 5 micrometres, and none were larger than 53 micrometres.”
“This size fraction has been totally overlooked in almost all marine microplastics.” Faull adds.
The Raman microspectroscopy based research found microplastics less than 53 micrometres in size hundreds of thousands of times more often than all the combined reports around the globe using traditional detection techniques.
The false-color images of green and red match for specific polymers detected in the particle. Credit: Luis Medina Faull.
“Understanding health risks from exposure to microplastics is a vastly understudied area, and investigations are needed to understand the health impacts from microplastics of different shapes, sizes, and compositions,” says Jaymie Meliker, a public health researcher at Stony Brook University who was not involved in the study.
Faull emphasises the need for wider research on microplastics in the ocean.
“Firstly, most of the ocean is grossly under-sampled, and the majority of existing data is based on towed net studies. And smaller, less buoyant microplastic particles residing below the ocean’s upper few meters are almost never sampled. Secondly, understanding sources of microplastics transport and final landing locations such as ocean floors is crucial to explain the distribution patterns of microplastics throughout the ocean,” he explains.
![](https://www.nanoappsmedical.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/spacer.jpg)
News
The Silent Battle Within: How Your Organs Choose Between Mom and Dad’s Genes
Research reveals that selective expression of maternal or paternal X chromosomes varies by organ, driven by cellular competition. A new study published today (July 26) in Nature Genetics by the Lymphoid Development Group at the MRC [...]
Study identifies genes increasing risk of severe COVID-19
Whether or not a person becomes seriously ill with COVID-19 depends, among other things, on genetic factors. With this in mind, researchers from the University Hospital Bonn (UKB) and the University of Bonn, in [...]
Small regions of the brain can take micro-naps while the rest of the brain is awake and vice versa
Sleep and wake: They're totally distinct states of being that define the boundaries of our daily lives. For years, scientists have measured the difference between these instinctual brain processes by observing brain waves, with [...]
Redefining Consciousness: Small Regions of the Brain Can Take Micro-Naps While the Rest of the Brain Is Awake
The study broadly reveals how fast brain waves, previously overlooked, establish fundamental patterns of sleep and wakefulness. Scientists have developed a new method to analyze sleep and wake states by detecting ultra-fast neuronal activity [...]
AI Reveals Health Secrets Through Facial Temperature Mapping
Researchers have found that different facial temperatures correlate with chronic illnesses like diabetes and high blood pressure, and these can be detected using AI with thermal cameras. They highlight the potential of this technology [...]
Breakthrough in aging research: Blocking IL-11 extends lifespan and improves health in mice
In a recent study published in the journal Nature, a team of researchers used murine models and various pharmacological and genetic approaches to examine whether pro-inflammatory signaling involving interleukin (IL)-11, which activates signaling molecules such [...]
Promise for a universal influenza vaccine: Scientists validate theory using 1918 flu virus
New research led by Oregon Health & Science University reveals a promising approach to developing a universal influenza vaccine—a so-called "one and done" vaccine that confers lifetime immunity against an evolving virus. The study, [...]
New Projects Aim To Pioneer the Future of Neuroscience
One study will investigate the alterations in brain activity at the cellular level caused by psilocybin, the psychoactive substance found in “magic mushrooms.” How do neurons respond to the effects of magic mushrooms? What [...]
Decoding the Decline: Scientific Insights Into Long COVID’s Retreat
Research indicates a significant reduction in long COVID risk, largely due to vaccination and the virus’s evolution. The study analyzes data from over 441,000 veterans, showing lower rates of long COVID among vaccinated individuals compared [...]
Silicon Transformed: A Breakthrough in Laser Nanofabrication
A new method enables precise nanofabrication inside silicon using spatial light modulation and laser pulses, creating advanced nanostructures for potential use in electronics and photonics. Silicon, the cornerstone of modern electronics, photovoltaics, and photonics, [...]
Caught in the actinium: New research could help design better cancer treatments
The element actinium was first discovered at the turn of the 20th century, but even now, nearly 125 years later, researchers still don't have a good grasp on the metal's chemistry. That's because actinium [...]
Innovative Light-Controlled Drugs Could Revolutionize Neuropathic Pain Treatment
A team of researchers from the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) has developed light-activated derivatives of the anti-epileptic drug carbamazepine to treat neuropathic pain. Light can be harnessed to target drugs to specific [...]
Green Gold: Turning E-Waste Into a Treasure Trove of Rare Earth Metals
Scientists are developing a process inspired by nature that efficiently recovers europium from old fluorescent lamps. The approach could lead to the long-awaited recycling of rare earth metals. A small molecule that naturally serves [...]
Cambridge Study: AI Chatbots Have an “Empathy Gap,” and It Could Be Dangerous
A new study suggests a framework for “Child Safe AI” in response to recent incidents showing that many children perceive chatbots as quasi-human and reliable. A study has indicated that AI chatbots often exhibit [...]
Nanoparticle-based delivery system could offer treatment for diabetics with rare insulin allergy
Up to 3% of people with diabetes have an allergic reaction to insulin. A team at Forschungszentrum Jülich has now studied a method that could be used to deliver the active substance into the [...]
Nanorobot kills cancer cells in mice with hidden weapon
Researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have developed nanorobots that kill cancer cells in mice. The robot's weapon is hidden in a nanostructure and is exposed only in the tumor microenvironment, sparing healthy cells. [...]