Mulliken Center for Theoretical Chemistry, University of Bonn, Beringstr. 4+6, 53115, Bonn, Germany.
Chemphyschem. 2020 Jan 3;21(1):9-12. doi: 10.1002/cphc.201900481. Epub 2019 Sep 16.
Whilst the formation of plastic nanoparticles (nanoplastics) from plastic wastes has been unequivocally evidenced, little is known about the effects of these materials on living organisms at the subcellular or molecular levels. In the present contribution we show through molecular dynamics simulations that polyethylene nanoparticles dissolve in the hydrophobic core of lipid bilayers into a network of disentangled, single polymeric chains. The thereby induced structural and dynamic changes in the bilayer alter vital functions of the cell membrane, which if lacking a mechanism to decompose the polymer chains may result in the death of the cell.
虽然已经明确证明了塑料废物形成的塑料纳米颗粒（纳米塑料），但对于这些材料在亚细胞或分子水平上对生物体的影响知之甚少。在本研究中，我们通过分子动力学模拟表明，聚乙烯纳米颗粒溶解在脂质双层的疏水区核心中，形成一个解缠的单聚合物链网络。由此引起的双层结构和动力学变化改变了细胞膜的重要功能，如果没有一种机制来分解聚合物链，可能导致细胞死亡。
