TY - JOUR
T1 - Adolescent exposure to micro/nanoplastics induces cognitive impairments in mice with neuronal morphological damage and multi-omic alterations
AU - Wang, Chaoqun
AU - Lin, Kaili
AU - Zhang, Zhu
AU - Pan, Yan
AU - Miao, Qiuping
AU - Han, Xiaohe
AU - Zhang, Zhang
AU - Zhu, Peili
AU - Yang, Jun
AU - Peng, Yinghui
AU - Yung, Ken Kin Lam
AU - Shi, Lei
AU - Zhang, Shiqing
N1 - This work was supported by the National Key R&D Program of China (2022YFA1104900), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (82204092, 82371175, 82071535, 82101614), the Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation (2022B1515130007, 2023A1515030012, 2023B1515040015), the International Science and Technology Projects of Guangdong Province (2023A0505050121), and the Science and Technology Program of Guangzhou (2024A04J10031).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2025 The Authors
PY - 2025/3
Y1 - 2025/3
N2 - Polystyrene micro/nanoplastics (MPs/NPs) are globally recognized environmental concerns due to their widespread pollution and detrimental effects on physiological functions. However, the neurotoxic effects and underlying mechanisms of MPs/NPs on brain function in adolescents remain incompletely understood. This study investigated the effects of polystyrene MPs/NPs on neurobehavioral function in adolescent mice, utilizing multi-omic analysis and molecular biology assays to explore potential mechanisms. Following oral exposure of MPs (5 μm) or NPs (0.5 μm) at 0.5 mg/day for 4 weeks, NPs induced more severe cognitive impairment in mice than MPs, as assessed by the Morris water maze and Y-maze tests. This impairment might be associated with the neuron loss and neurogenesis inhibition caused by NPs, while dendritic spine loss mediated by MPs in the hippocampus. Furthermore, analysis of hippocampal transcriptome and Western blotting indicated the potential involvement of the PI3K/AKT pathway in NPs-induced neurotoxicity. Meanwhile, exposure to NPs induced more pronounced disruptions in the hippocampal metabolome and gut microbiota, and strong correlations were observed between changes in hippocampal metabolites and gut bacteria. This study elucidated the toxicity mechanism of MPs and NPs in inducing cognitive impairment in adolescent mice, providing insights into their toxicological impacts and potential strategies for intervention.
AB - Polystyrene micro/nanoplastics (MPs/NPs) are globally recognized environmental concerns due to their widespread pollution and detrimental effects on physiological functions. However, the neurotoxic effects and underlying mechanisms of MPs/NPs on brain function in adolescents remain incompletely understood. This study investigated the effects of polystyrene MPs/NPs on neurobehavioral function in adolescent mice, utilizing multi-omic analysis and molecular biology assays to explore potential mechanisms. Following oral exposure of MPs (5 μm) or NPs (0.5 μm) at 0.5 mg/day for 4 weeks, NPs induced more severe cognitive impairment in mice than MPs, as assessed by the Morris water maze and Y-maze tests. This impairment might be associated with the neuron loss and neurogenesis inhibition caused by NPs, while dendritic spine loss mediated by MPs in the hippocampus. Furthermore, analysis of hippocampal transcriptome and Western blotting indicated the potential involvement of the PI3K/AKT pathway in NPs-induced neurotoxicity. Meanwhile, exposure to NPs induced more pronounced disruptions in the hippocampal metabolome and gut microbiota, and strong correlations were observed between changes in hippocampal metabolites and gut bacteria. This study elucidated the toxicity mechanism of MPs and NPs in inducing cognitive impairment in adolescent mice, providing insights into their toxicological impacts and potential strategies for intervention.
KW - Adolescent mouse
KW - Cognitive impairment
KW - Multi-omics
KW - Polystyrene micro/nanoplastics
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85217629655&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160412025000741?via%3Dihub
U2 - 10.1016/j.envint.2025.109323
DO - 10.1016/j.envint.2025.109323
M3 - Journal article
AN - SCOPUS:85217629655
SN - 0160-4120
VL - 197
JO - Environment International
JF - Environment International
M1 - 109323
ER -
