Ibrahim Yusof Shuaib, Tuan Anuar Sabiqah, Azmi Alyza A, Wan Mohd Khalik Wan Mohd Afiq, Lehata Shumpei, Hamzah Siti Rabaah, Ismail Dzulkiflee, Ma Zheng Feei, Dzulkarnaen Andee, Zakaria Zaidi, Mustaffa Nazri, Tuan Sharif Sharifah Emilia, Lee Yeong Yeh
Microplastic Research Interest Group, Faculty of Science and Marine Environment Universiti Malaysia Terengganu Kuala Nerus Malaysia.
School of Health Sciences Universiti Sains Malaysia Kota Bharu Malaysia.
JGH Open. 2020 Nov 21;5(1):116-121. doi: 10.1002/jgh3.12457. eCollection 2021 Jan.
While dietary exposure to microplastics is increasingly recognized, it is unknown if ingested plastics remain within the digestive tract. We aimed to examine human colectomy specimens for microplastics and to report the characteristics as well as polymer composition of the particles.
Colectomy samples were obtained from 11 adults (mean age 45.7, six males) who were residents of Northeastern Peninsular Malaysia. Microplastics were identified following chemical digestion of specimens and subsequent filtration. The samples were then examined for characteristics (abundance, length, shape, and color) and composition of three common polymer types using stereo- and Fourier Transform InfraRed (FTIR) microscopes.
Microplastics were detected in all 11 specimens with an average of 331 particles/individual specimen or 28.1 ± 15.4 particles/g tissue. Filaments or fibers accounted for 96.1% of particles, and 73.1% of all filaments were transparent. Out of 40 random filaments from 10 specimens (one had indeterminate spectra patterns), 90% were polycarbonate, 50% were polyamide, and 40% were polypropylene.
Our study suggests that microplastics are ubiquitously present in the human colon.
尽管饮食中微塑料暴露日益受到关注，但摄入的塑料是否会留在消化道内尚不清楚。我们旨在检查人类结肠切除标本中的微塑料，并报告颗粒的特征以及聚合物组成。
从马来西亚半岛东北部的11名成年人（平均年龄45.7岁，6名男性）获取结肠切除样本。标本经化学消化并随后过滤后鉴定微塑料。然后使用立体显微镜和傅里叶变换红外（FTIR）显微镜检查样本的特征（丰度、长度、形状和颜色）以及三种常见聚合物类型的组成。
在所有11个标本中均检测到微塑料，平均每个标本有331个颗粒，或每克组织有28.1±15.4个颗粒。细丝或纤维占颗粒的96.1%，所有细丝中有73.1%是透明的。从10个标本中随机选取40根细丝（1根光谱模式不确定），90%是聚碳酸酯，50%是聚酰胺，40%是聚丙烯。
我们的研究表明微塑料在人类结肠中普遍存在。
