Ghosal Souvik, Bag Sagar, Bhowmik Sudipta
Mahatma Gandhi Medical Advanced Research Institute (MGMARI), Sri Balaji Vidyapeeth (Deemed to be University) Pondy-Cuddalore Main Road, Pillaiyarkuppam Pondicherry 607402 India.
Department of Biophysics, Molecular Biology and Bioinformatics, University of Calcutta 92, A.P.C. Road Kolkata 700009 India
RSC Adv. 2025 Aug 4;15(34):27576-27585. doi: 10.1039/d5ra02355f. eCollection 2025 Aug 1.
Microplastics (MPs) pollution represents a global concern for biodiversity conservation, ecosystem and public health. The poly(vinyl chloride) Microplastics (PVC-MPs) are one of the dominant pollutants in both terrestrial and aquatic ecosystem. Myoglobin (Mb) is an important intracellular oxygen-binding protein found in mammals' hearts and skeletal muscles. Mb act as an oxygen transporter and storage material in muscle cells. Due to molecular inertness and excellent accessibility to organisms, PVC-MPs are degraded slowly in the atmosphere and can accumulate in the mammalian bloodstream, posing major health risks. In this study, under simulated physiological conditions, the interaction between the emerging pollutant PVC-MPs and Mb was analysed using multispectroscopic studies. From these studies, it has been found that PVC-MPs may bind to Mb during transportation and metabolic activities. Because of their tiny size, PVC-MPs may bind with Mb once they enter the bloodstream, altering the structure and physiological function of Mb. These results also suggest that electrostatic forces were the primary factor behind the interaction between PVC-MPs and Mb. Additionally, the results further showed that PVC-MPs significantly altered the microenvironment and secondary structure of Mb, which decreased the α-helix. This study clarifies the possible molecular toxicity of PVC-MPs in addition to provide crucial insight into the intermolecular interaction between PVC-MPs and Mb.
微塑料（MPs）污染是生物多样性保护、生态系统和公众健康领域的一个全球性问题。聚氯乙烯微塑料（PVC-MPs）是陆地和水生生态系统中的主要污染物之一。肌红蛋白（Mb）是一种重要的细胞内氧结合蛋白，存在于哺乳动物的心脏和骨骼肌中。Mb在肌肉细胞中充当氧转运体和储存物质。由于分子惰性和对生物体的良好可及性，PVC-MPs在大气中降解缓慢，并可在哺乳动物血液中积累，构成重大健康风险。在本研究中，在模拟生理条件下，使用多光谱研究分析了新兴污染物PVC-MPs与Mb之间的相互作用。从这些研究中发现，PVC-MPs可能在运输和代谢活动期间与Mb结合。由于其尺寸微小，PVC-MPs一旦进入血液就可能与Mb结合，改变Mb的结构和生理功能。这些结果还表明，静电力是PVC-MPs与Mb之间相互作用的主要因素。此外，结果进一步表明，PVC-MPs显著改变了Mb的微环境和二级结构，降低了α-螺旋。本研究除了为PVC-MPs与Mb之间的分子间相互作用提供关键见解外，还阐明了PVC-MPs可能的分子毒性。
