Marine microplastics as vectors of major ocean pollutants and its hazards to the marine ecosystem and humans
Abstract Microplastic pollutes water, land, air, and groundwater environments not only visually but also ecologically for plants, animals, and humans. Microplastic has been reported to act as vectors by sorbing pollutants and contributing to the bioaccumulation of pollutants, particularly in marine...
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doaj-76581133ae854c06b688e7f1e89e887f2021-01-24T12:25:05ZengSpringerOpenProgress in Earth and Planetary Science2197-42842021-01-018112610.1186/s40645-020-00405-4Marine microplastics as vectors of major ocean pollutants and its hazards to the marine ecosystem and humansTan Suet May Amelia0Wan Mohd Afiq Wan Mohd Khalik1Meng Chuan Ong2Yi Ta Shao3Hui-Juan Pan4Kesaven Bhubalan5Faculty of Science and Marine Environment, Universiti Malaysia TerengganuFaculty of Science and Marine Environment, Universiti Malaysia TerengganuFaculty of Science and Marine Environment, Universiti Malaysia TerengganuInstitute of Marine Biology, National Taiwan Ocean UniversityInstitute of Earth Sciences, College of Ocean Science and Resource, National Taiwan Ocean UniversityFaculty of Science and Marine Environment, Universiti Malaysia TerengganuAbstract Microplastic pollutes water, land, air, and groundwater environments not only visually but also ecologically for plants, animals, and humans. Microplastic has been reported to act as vectors by sorbing pollutants and contributing to the bioaccumulation of pollutants, particularly in marine ecosystems, organisms, and subsequently food webs. The inevitable exposure of microplastic to humans emphasises the need to review the potential effects, exposure pathways, and toxicity of microplastic toward human health. Therefore, this review was aimed to reveal the risks of pollutant sorption and bioaccumulation by microplastic toward humans, as well as the dominant types of pollutants sorbed by microplastic, and the types of pollutants that are bioaccumulated by microplastic in the living organisms of the marine ecosystem. The possible factors influencing the sorption and bioaccumulation of pollutants by microplastic in marine ecosystems were also reviewed. The review also revealed the prevailing types of microplastic, abundance of microplastic, and geographical distribution of microplastic in the aquatic environment globally. The literature review revealed that microplastic characteristics, chemical interactions, and water properties played a role in the sorption of pollutants by microplastic. The evidence of microplastic posing a direct medical threat to humans is still lacking albeit substantial literature has reported the health hazards of microplastic-associated monomers, additives, and pollutants. This review recommends future research on the existing knowledge gaps in microplastic research, which include the toxicity of microplastic, particularly to humans, as well as the factors influencing the sorption and bioaccumulation of pollutants by microplastic.https://doi.org/10.1186/s40645-020-00405-4AdsorptionBioaccumulationContaminantMicroplasticPollutantVector |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Tan Suet May Amelia Wan Mohd Afiq Wan Mohd Khalik Meng Chuan Ong Yi Ta Shao Hui-Juan Pan Kesaven Bhubalan |
spellingShingle |
Tan Suet May Amelia Wan Mohd Afiq Wan Mohd Khalik Meng Chuan Ong Yi Ta Shao Hui-Juan Pan Kesaven Bhubalan Marine microplastics as vectors of major ocean pollutants and its hazards to the marine ecosystem and humans Progress in Earth and Planetary Science Adsorption Bioaccumulation Contaminant Microplastic Pollutant Vector |
author_facet |
Tan Suet May Amelia Wan Mohd Afiq Wan Mohd Khalik Meng Chuan Ong Yi Ta Shao Hui-Juan Pan Kesaven Bhubalan |
author_sort |
Tan Suet May Amelia |
title |
Marine microplastics as vectors of major ocean pollutants and its hazards to the marine ecosystem and humans |
title_short |
Marine microplastics as vectors of major ocean pollutants and its hazards to the marine ecosystem and humans |
title_full |
Marine microplastics as vectors of major ocean pollutants and its hazards to the marine ecosystem and humans |
title_fullStr |
Marine microplastics as vectors of major ocean pollutants and its hazards to the marine ecosystem and humans |
title_full_unstemmed |
Marine microplastics as vectors of major ocean pollutants and its hazards to the marine ecosystem and humans |
title_sort |
marine microplastics as vectors of major ocean pollutants and its hazards to the marine ecosystem and humans |
publisher |
SpringerOpen |
series |
Progress in Earth and Planetary Science |
issn |
2197-4284 |
publishDate |
2021-01-01 |
description |
Abstract Microplastic pollutes water, land, air, and groundwater environments not only visually but also ecologically for plants, animals, and humans. Microplastic has been reported to act as vectors by sorbing pollutants and contributing to the bioaccumulation of pollutants, particularly in marine ecosystems, organisms, and subsequently food webs. The inevitable exposure of microplastic to humans emphasises the need to review the potential effects, exposure pathways, and toxicity of microplastic toward human health. Therefore, this review was aimed to reveal the risks of pollutant sorption and bioaccumulation by microplastic toward humans, as well as the dominant types of pollutants sorbed by microplastic, and the types of pollutants that are bioaccumulated by microplastic in the living organisms of the marine ecosystem. The possible factors influencing the sorption and bioaccumulation of pollutants by microplastic in marine ecosystems were also reviewed. The review also revealed the prevailing types of microplastic, abundance of microplastic, and geographical distribution of microplastic in the aquatic environment globally. The literature review revealed that microplastic characteristics, chemical interactions, and water properties played a role in the sorption of pollutants by microplastic. The evidence of microplastic posing a direct medical threat to humans is still lacking albeit substantial literature has reported the health hazards of microplastic-associated monomers, additives, and pollutants. This review recommends future research on the existing knowledge gaps in microplastic research, which include the toxicity of microplastic, particularly to humans, as well as the factors influencing the sorption and bioaccumulation of pollutants by microplastic. |
topic |
Adsorption Bioaccumulation Contaminant Microplastic Pollutant Vector |
url |
https://doi.org/10.1186/s40645-020-00405-4 |
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