Bruno Annalisa, Dovizio Melania, Milillo Cristina, Aruffo Eleonora, Pesce Mirko, Gatta Marco, Chiacchiaretta Piero, Di Carlo Piero, Ballerini Patrizia
Department of Innovative Technologies in Medicine & Dentistry, "G. d'Annunzio" University of Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy.
Center for Advanced Studies and Technology (CAST), "G. d'Annunzio" University of Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy.
Cancers (Basel). 2024 Sep 4;16(17):3079. doi: 10.3390/cancers16173079.
Micro- and nano-plastics (MNPLs) can move along the food chain to higher-level organisms including humans. Three significant routes for MNPLs have been reported: ingestion, inhalation, and dermal contact. Accumulating evidence supports the intestinal toxicity of ingested MNPLs and their role as drivers for increased incidence of colorectal cancer (CRC) in high-risk populations such as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients. However, the mechanisms are largely unknown. In this review, by using the leading scientific publication databases (Web of Science, Google Scholar, Scopus, PubMed, and ScienceDirect), we explored the possible effects and related mechanisms of MNPL exposure on the gut epithelium in healthy conditions and IBD patients. The summarized evidence supports the idea that oral MNPL exposure may contribute to intestinal epithelial damage, thus promoting and sustaining the chronic development of intestinal inflammation, mainly in high-risk populations such as IBD patients. Colonic mucus layer disruption may further facilitate MNPL passage into the bloodstream, thus contributing to the toxic effects of MNPLs on different organ systems and platelet activation, which may, in turn, contribute to the chronic development of inflammation and CRC development. Further exploration of this threat to human health is warranted to reduce potential adverse effects and CRC risk.
微塑料和纳米塑料（MNPLs）可沿食物链转移至包括人类在内的更高营养级生物体内。据报道，MNPLs有三条主要的进入途径：摄入、吸入和皮肤接触。越来越多的证据支持摄入的MNPLs具有肠道毒性，以及它们在炎症性肠病（IBD）患者等高风险人群中作为结直肠癌（CRC）发病率增加的驱动因素的作用。然而，其机制在很大程度上尚不清楚。在本综述中，我们利用领先的科学出版物数据库（科学网、谷歌学术、Scopus、PubMed和ScienceDirect），探讨了MNPL暴露在健康状况和IBD患者中对肠道上皮细胞的可能影响及相关机制。总结的证据支持这样一种观点，即经口暴露于MNPLs可能导致肠道上皮损伤，从而促进和维持肠道炎症的慢性发展，主要发生在IBD患者等高风险人群中。结肠黏液层的破坏可能会进一步促进MNPL进入血液，从而导致MNPLs对不同器官系统产生毒性作用以及血小板活化，这反过来可能会促进炎症的慢性发展和CRC的发生。有必要对这种对人类健康的威胁进行进一步探索，以减少潜在的不良影响和CRC风险。
