Department of Ecosustainable Marine Biotechnology, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Via Ammiraglio Ferdinando Acton, n.55, 80133, Napoli, Italy; Institute of Polymers, Composites and Biomaterials, National Research Council of Italy, Via Campi Flegri, 34, 80078, Pozzuoli, Napoli, Italy; Department of Biology, University of Naples Federico II, Via Cinthia 26, 80126, Napoli, Italy.
Institute of Polymers, Composites and Biomaterials, National Research Council of Italy, Via Campi Flegri, 34, 80078, Pozzuoli, Napoli, Italy.
Environ Pollut. 2023 Oct 1;334:122129. doi: 10.1016/j.envpol.2023.122129. Epub 2023 Jul 8.
Plastic pollution is a remarkable environmental issue. In fact, plastic is widespread in the lifetime and serious environmental problems are caused by the improper management of plastic end of life, being plastic litter detected in any environment. Efforts are put to implement the development of sustainable and circular materials. In this scenario, biodegradable polymers, BPs, are promising materials if correctly applied and managed at the end of life to minimize environmental problems. However, a lack of data on BPs fate and toxicity on marine organisms, limits their applicability. In this research, the impact of microplastics obtained from BPs, BMPs, were analyzed on Paracentrotus lividus. Microplastics were produced from five biodegradable polyesters at laboratory scale by milling the pristine polymers, under cryogenic conditions. Morphological analysis of P. lividus embryos exposed to polycaprolactone (PCL), polyhydroxy butyrate (PHB) and polylactic acid (PLA) showed their delay and malformations, which at molecular level are due to variation in expression levels of eighty-seven genes involved in various cellular processes, such as skeletogenesis, differentiation and development, stress, and detoxification response. Exposure to poly(butylene succinate) (PBS) and poly(butylene succinate-co-adipate) (PBSA) microplastics showed no detectable effects on P. lividus embryos. These findings contribute with important data on the effect of BPs on the physiology of marine invertebrates.
塑料污染是一个显著的环境问题。事实上，塑料在生活中广泛存在，由于塑料寿命终结时管理不当，造成了严重的环境问题，在任何环境中都能检测到塑料垃圾。人们正在努力实施可持续和循环材料的开发。在这种情况下，如果可生物降解聚合物（BP）在使用寿命结束时得到正确应用和管理，以最大限度地减少环境问题，它们将是有前途的材料。然而，由于缺乏关于 BP 在海洋生物中的命运和毒性的数据，限制了它们的适用性。在这项研究中，分析了源自 BP 的微塑料对 P. lividus 的影响。通过在低温条件下研磨原始聚合物，在实验室规模上从五种可生物降解聚酯中生产出微塑料。暴露于聚己内酯 (PCL)、聚羟基丁酸酯 (PHB) 和聚乳酸 (PLA) 的 P. lividus 胚胎的形态分析表明它们的延迟和畸形，这在分子水平上是由于参与各种细胞过程的 87 个基因的表达水平发生变化，例如骨骼发生、分化和发育、应激和解毒反应。暴露于聚丁二酸丁二醇酯 (PBS) 和聚丁二酸丁二醇酯-己二酸酯 (PBSA) 微塑料对 P. lividus 胚胎没有显示出可检测到的影响。这些发现为 BP 对海洋无脊椎动物生理学的影响提供了重要数据。
